XXXHolic: Hitsuzen
by weezerz2490
Summary: Nothing in this world is coincidence, everything is inevitable. Suzume never put much stock in superstitions before, but that soon changes when she meets the mysterious Yuuko and her part timer Watanuki and friends. Was their meeting chance or fate?
1. Fated Meeting

**Author's Note: I don't own anything but my OC. As everyone knows, **_**XXXHolic**_** belongs to the geniuses known as CLAMP. I'll probably be using a combination of the manga and anime for this story, so I'm sorry if there's any confusion. I hope you like it!**

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><p>≈ Narration ≈<br>[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]  
>{settingstage directions}  
>"Speech."<br>'Thoughts.'  
>"<strong>English speech."<br>**—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.  
><em>A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.<br>_WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.  
>Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.<br>Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

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><p>≈<em>Nothing in this world is coincidence. Everything is hitsuzen.≈<em>

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><p>{At the local hospital...}<p>

"Yuuko-san, why are we at the hospital? Is someone you know ill?" Watanuki asked Yuuko. "—And why are you here_!_?" Watanuki demanded of Doumeki, bristling like a cat that just had water thrown onto it. The three of them were walking down the hallway of the hospital together. Yuuko had very forcefully, at least in Watanuki's case, invited them along to visit the hospital with her. Doumeki agreed since he didn't have archery practice that day, and she promised that Watanuki would make them all snacks so that they could have a picnic later, much to Watanuki's chagrin.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? We're here for a customer. She has a wish that she desperately wants to make, but for certain reasons, she is unable to make it to the shop. So, we're going to her." Yuuko explained, smiling like a Cheshire cat.

"Oh, like when we went to the apartment of that 'Hanahana' person...? But why is _he _here?" Watanuki yelled as he pointed dramatically at Doumeki, who remained as stoic as ever.

"Shouldn't you keep your voice down, we're in a hospital." Doumeki deadpanned.

"It's because of _you_ that I'm yelling!" Watanuki snapped, vein mark throbbing on his head.

"Well, we're in a hospital, right? You of all people should know what kind of things lurk these halls. Normally, you'd have a hard time entering into a place like this, but it's safer for you with Doumeki here." Yuuko said nonchalantly. "Ah, here we are." Yuuko said as she entered a room that had the surname 'Inoue' on the nameplate.

"Ah! You can't just barge into the room without even knocking!" Watanuki scolded her as he and Doumeki followed her into the room. "I'm sorry, this person has no manners. Please pardon the intrusion!" Watanuki said as he rubbed the back of his head and apologized to the patient in the room. He was caught a little off guard when he saw that the patient in the room was about his age. She looked extremely pale and frail. Her blue-violet eyes were dull from pain and fatigue, and her brown hair had lost its healthy shine. This poor girl, whatever she had, she was really sick. She looked like death warmed over, like she would break if you even breathed too hard on her.

"Who has no manners?" Yuuko asked, irritated, as she smacked him up the backside of his head, snapping him out of it. It was rude to stare, after all.

"Waah!" Watanuki yelled, more out of surprise than pain as his hands flew to his head, and he shot about a foot off of the ground. The bedridden girl in front of them giggled weakly, but then she broke out into a coughing fit. "Ah! Are you alright_!_?" Watanuki asked urgently as he rushed to her side.

"Water." Doumeki said as he handed the girl the cup of water that had been on the table by her bed. The girl took the cup from him with shaky hands, and carefully sipped it until her coughing stopped.

"Th-Thank you..." The girl said. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, and she gave them a weak, but grateful smile. "I guess it's been a while since I laughed like that, so I was caught off guard." She smiled wryly. "I'm Inoue Suzume, and you are...?"

"Oh, I'm Kimihiro Watanuki, and this rude, poker-faced guy is Doumeki, and she's—" Watanuki said, but Yuuko interrupted him so that she could do her own introduction.

"I am Ichihara Yuuko. I own a shop that grants wishes. Since I was drawn here to you, you must have a wish, one that you desire very strongly." Yuuko said.

"My... wish?" Suzume asked, confused. She had been glad to see someone other than her vulture relatives, but if these people weren't right in the head, it could be dangerous...

"Isn't there something that's been bothering you lately, something you want to change." Yuuko said. It wasn't a question. Yuuko knew what this girl's wish was. Suzume bit her lip. It would be nice if this woman really could grant her wish, but... if she were to wish for anything, it would be for her illness to be cured. However, the doctors couldn't even figure out what was wrong with her, so she didn't know how this woman could possibly help her.

"Don't you want your 'illness' to heal?" Yuuko asked, as if she could read her mind. "Your illness was sudden, wasn't it. Everyday you grow weaker, yet the doctors still have no idea what's causing it, despite all of the testing they've subjected you to. At this rate, you'll probably be dead by the end of the week." Watanuki's eyes widened slightly when he heard that. This girl only had three days left to live? Yuuko sounded so serious, that he knew she wasn't just saying this to coerce the girl into making her wish. Suzume really was dying. Suzume stared at Yuuko, shocked. She didn't want to believe it, but she had heard the nurses gossiping about how they didn't think she'd last much longer, and Suzume couldn't deny that she could practically _feel_ her lifespan shortening.

"... You're saying... that you can heal me? ... What's the catch?" Suzume asked, trying not to sound as desperate as she felt. Suzume wasn't an idiot, she knew that whatever could cure such a horrible illness wouldn't be cheap. Yuuko smirked. This girl was smarter than most of her customers, who usually just assumed the 'price' of the wish would be something insignificant.

"I'll grant your wish, but... I want equal payment." Yuuko said. Suzume furrowed her brow in confusion.

"... Somehow, I get the feeling you aren't talking about money..." Suzume said warily.

"No. If I heal your 'illness,' the cost would be quite high since the thing causing your illness will be quite troublesome to get rid off." Yuuko said. "The price for your wish will be that you will no longer be able to 'turn a blind eye' to certain _things_ in the world around you. This could prove to be dangerous for you. You must also give me the book of poems you wrote while you were bedridden." Suzume stared at Yuuko, shocked.

'How did she know about that book...?' Suzume wondered. 'And I don't understand that part about my eyesight, but at this point, I'm desperate enough to try anything.' She decided. Suzume closed her eyes and took a breath before looking up at Yuuko. "I'm not sure I fully understand, but I'll pay. Just... please cure me." Suzume said, her eyes shining with determination through her pain. Yuuko smiled like the cat that ate the canary.

"Watanuki, open that bag I had you bring here, put the incense in the four corners of the room, and burn it. Then grab that mirror hanging on the wall, and stand at the foot of the bed while holding it." Yuuko ordered. "This is for you, Doumeki-kun." Yuuko said as she handed him a bow, but no arrow. Suzume raised and eyebrow.

'Where did she pull that out from...?' Suzume wondered as Doumeki took the bow without so much as batting an eyelash.

"When it's time, shoot, just like during the hyakumonogatari." Yuuko instructed him. She turned back to Suzume. "Now, I'll be needing that notebook."

"Um... okay, it's in the drawer of that table." Suzume said, referring to the table that Doumeki had gotten the cup of water from earlier. Yuuko opened the drawer, removed the notebook, and started flipping through it.

"My, you certainly have a way with words... Ah, yes, this one will suit our purposes nicely." Yuuko said as she ripped one of the pages out and stuck it onto the back of the mirror that Watanuki was holding. "Now that everything has been properly set up, we can begin. Suzume-chan, no matter what happens, you must not move or speak. If you do, the exorcism will backfire on you." Suzume gaped at her.

"Exorcism_!_?" Suzume yelled, stunned. She wasn't particularly superstitious or anything, so demonic possession was a little hard for her to believe.

"_Unbearable pain  
>Illness affects my very soul<br>Leave—plague me no more!"_ Yuuko recited.

Suzume immediately shut up, surprised when she heard Yuuko reciting one of her haikus, and startled by the serious look on Yuuko's face as the lights suddenly flickered off and the room started shaking slightly. Suzume could feel an intense burning sensation in her chest, like an extreme case of heartburn after eating a chilidog with cheese, bacon, onions, jalapeno peppers, hot sauce, with some special sauce, and then washing it down with a nice tall glass of battery acid. Whether she believed in demons or not didn't matter, because this was all definitely happening, for real, so Suzume decided to follow Yuuko's instructions, rather than risk the consequences of having this exorcism 'backfire' whatever that meant. Suzume nearly ran out of the room when she looked into the mirror before her. The reason why her chest was burning, was probably because there was this freaky looking snake-like creature flying out of it, and trying to enter the mirror. She noticed that Watanuki looked just as freaked out, and she didn't blame him, since it was flying right at him.

"Now, Doumeki-kun, shoot the mirror." Yuuko ordered. Doumeki pulled the bowstring back, aimed, and fired. Suzume's eyes widened when some kind of glowing energy hit the creepy snake thing, just as it reached the mirror, and completely obliterated it. The lights immediately came back on, and the burning sensation in Suzume's chest subsided. In fact, she could feel herself getting stronger by the second. That crazy exorcism had worked! "I can see you're feeling better already. Some of the color has returned to your face." Yuuko said.

"Yes, I don't know what the heck that thing was, or what just happened, but it worked! Thank you!" Suzume said as she smiled radiantly at them, overflowing with happiness and relief. Watanuki was stunned. It had only been a few seconds, and there was already such a huge difference from the ghost of a smile she had given them before. Suzume turned to Doumeki, looking extremely curious. "Say, what was that light you shot at it earlier?"

"Eh? You could see that?" Watanuki asked, surprised. Not many people could see another's spiritual energy, and it was especially surprising since she hadn't even been able to tell that she was possessed. Watanuki hadn't seen it since it was hiding inside of her, but he had sensed its presence after being in the same room as her for a while. Yuuko smiled.

"What you saw was Doumeki-kun's spiritual energy. He has a power that wipes away evil spirits and demons." Yuuko explained.

"Wow... that's awesome!" Suzume said, amazed.

"Yeah, but he can't see them at all." Watanuki muttered.

"Eh? Then... how did he hit it?" Suzume asked, confused.

"That's why we had to use the mirror to draw the demon out of you. It gave Doumeki-kun a target to aim at. Without realizing it, you had infused the words you were writing with your own spiritual energy, giving them power. That poem was basically a type of talisman. That's why I recited it to drive the demon out. The smoke from the incense that has filled this room was to mask the presence of your real body. This confused the demon, and it flew towards the image of you that was reflected in the mirror instead, attracted by your spiritual energy that was in the poem I taped to the back of it. I had Watanuki hold it since spirits are naturally drawn to him, too." Yuuko explained.

"Wow... that's pretty amazing... thanks for explaining." Suzume said. She hadn't really believed in any of this supernatural stuff before, but after seeing that... Suzume was _definitely_ a believer now.

"So, you used me as bait... _again_!" Watanuki said incredulously. Wasn't it bad enough that those things targeted him _without_ Yuuko's help?

"Sorry, thanks for helping me." Suzume said, laughing nervously as she sweat dropped.

"Oh, no, _you_ don't need to apologize." Watanuki told Suzume.

"This happens all the time." Doumeki deadpanned.

"It does, but it pisses me off when you say it like that!" Watanuki snapped.

"Haha, you two really get along well, huh?" Suzume said, smiling in amusement.

"No, we don't! Why does everyone think that_!_?" Watanuki yelled indignantly as he held his head and spazzed out. Suzume laughed and smiled wryly, amused by Watanuki's antics.

"Haha, you guys are hilarious!" Suzume said. Her cheeks were starting to hurt from all the smiling she was doing. It had been weeks since she was able to smile like this. Yuuko watched as the three teenagers interacted with each other, none of them noticing the mysterious smile on her face or the scheming gleam in her eye.


	2. Family Feud

**Author's Note: I don't own anything but my OC. As everyone knows, _XXXHolic_ belongs to the geniuses known as CLAMP. I'll probably be using a combination of the manga and anime for this story, so I'm sorry if there's any confusion. I hope you like it!  
><strong>

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><p>≈ Narration ≈<p>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

"**English speech."**

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><em>≈ Even family are still other people. Other than being related by blood, is there any other relation? Aside from yourself, everyone else will always be other people. ≈<em>

{The next day, at the local park...}

"I'm glad that girl, Suzume-chan, is alright. Now that that demon can't hurt her anymore, she should be fine now." Watanuki said, as he lay out the food he had made for their picnic. In addition to himself, Yuuko, and Doumeki, Mokona was also with them today.

"Are there croquettes in there?" Doumeki asked.

"Yes, there are! But it's irritating how you say that like it's not possible for them to be in there!" Watanuki snapped.

"It would be great if that was the end of it." Yuuko said enigmatically.

"Huh?" Watanuki asked. He didn't like the way she just said that.

"That won't be the last we see of Suzume-chan. That demon was specifically targeting her, but more importantly..." Yuuko said.

"...More importantly?" Watanuki asked, gulping.

"We're out of sake! Watanuki, go buy some more~!" Yuuko said, pouting.

"Yeah, Watanuki!" Mokona chimed.

"Your priorities are messed up!" Watanuki yelled, cutting the air with his hand, like a stereotypical tsukkomi.

"We're out of food too." Doumeki deadpanned.

"You ate it all already_!_?" Watanuki shouted, vein mark throbbing on his forehead.

"Oh, I thought I heard familiar voices! Hello again!" Suzume's called out to them as she ran up to join them. She was wearing a knit sweater shrug over a graphic-T, skinny jeans, and boots.

"Ah, Suzume-chan! You're already out of the hospital?" Watanuki asked.

"Yeah, they finally let go! Something about a miraculous recovery." Suzume said, winking at them. "I seriously can't thank you guys enough! Although... I do have a question for you, Yuuko-san."

"It's about your 'sight,' right?" Yuuko said, smiling knowingly.

"Yeah, ever since the exorcism, I've been seeing strange things—like something out of that painting of a demon parade." Suzume said, rubbing the back of her neck as she smiled wryly.

"Eh_!_? You can see spirits now? Are you all right? Did they attack you_!_?" Watanuki asked urgently.

"Don't worry, I'm totally fine." Suzume said, smiling and waving his worries away. "I was shocked and scared at first, but then I remembered what Yuuko-san said about not being 'blind' anymore, and I figured this was probably what she meant... because it would really suck if I turned out to be hallucinating and had to be committed into a mental hospital after finally being released from the normal one." She said, sweat dropping. "One of them did come at me, but I told it to get lost, and it just went away on its own after that."

"Eh_!_?" Watanuki yelled, stunned. "You can get them to go away so easily_!_? They always chase me and cling to me relentlessly!"

"Really? That's weird. They seem pretty docile to me. Once you get used to the strangeness of it all, it's not so bad." Suzume said, smiling. "They're kind of interesting, actually. It's a little hard to ignore them sometimes though, and people tend to look at me funny when I talk to a spirit without realizing it, since they can't see it."

"I know, right! I can't tell you how many times I talked to someone, only to find out that they were really a spirit." Watanuki said, enjoying being able to talk to someone who understood how he felt.

"Yeah, but... I wonder why I can see them now... Was it because I was possessed?" Suzume asked Yuuko. Yuuko smiled mysteriously at her.

"You've always had the ability to see them. You even have some of the same type of power as Doumeki, although it's not quite the same. Someone had sealed your powers away and placed a spiritual 'blindfold' on you, probably when you were very small, since you don't seem to recall ever seeing a spirit before yesterday. The seal broke when we had to forcibly remove that demon from you." Yuuko said.

"Hmm... come to think of it, my grandmother did bring me to a friend of hers, who was a Miko, when I was really young, before my parents died... She said some strange incantation, but that's all I can remember. I think I was about three-years-old." Suzume said thoughtfully.

"Oi, Watanuki, don't forget—you're supposed to be getting more sake!" Mokona said, jumping up and down impatiently. Suzume stared at Mokona with wide eyes, and for a moment, Watanuki thought she was scared.

"S-So cuuuuute~!" Suzume cried as she glomped Mokona.

"Whoa_!_?" Mokona cried in surprise.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I hurt you_!_?" Suzume asked. "I have a hard time controlling myself when I see something so cute." Suzume said, as she set Mokona back down on the ground.

"You think that thing is cute?" Watanuki asked skeptically.

"Yep! Just look at that cute little dumpling like body, and those bunny-like ears!" Suzume said, smiling brightly.

"Go ahead, praise me more~!" Mokona said proudly. "Hm... you must be that Suzume girl that Watanuki was talking about earlier, I'm Mokona."

"Nice to meet you, Mokona. Like you guessed, my name's Suzume... Um, I don't know if this is rude to ask, but what are you?" Suzume said curiously.

"Mokona is a Mokona!" Mokona said proudly.

"Ah, I see. That makes sense." Suzume said, smiling.

"It does..._!_?" Watanuki said, shocked that Suzume could understand something so cryptic. It didn't make any sense at all to him.

"Suzume!" They all heard a man yell from behind them. Suzume's eye twitched in irritation as she grit her teeth, and put on a brilliant shit-eating grin before turning around to face the middle-aged man the was walking towards them. Watanuki was puzzled by her reaction. The man had sounded happy to see her. Doumeki remained as stoic as ever, but there was something about that man's demeanor that he didn't like.

"Hideki-oji-san! My, what a _surprise_~!" Suzume said in an over-exaggeratedly sweet tone of voice.

"What are you doing in the park? Shouldn't you be taking it easy after being released from the hospital just yesterday? We wouldn't want you to become ill again, now would we?" The man, Hideki said. He sounded concerned on the surface, but Watanuki could now sense a hidden maliciousness behind his words. Doumeki narrowed his eyes slightly and Yuuko stared coolly at the man.

"Oh, no, I imagine not! After all, who would inherit Chiyo-oba-chan's fortune after I die?" Suzume said sarcastically, still sporting her shit-eating grin. The man's own fake smile fell as he stared coldly at Suzume.

'So, she's realized what this is all about, huh... I thought she was just a stupid brat, but it turns out she's too smart for her own good.' Hideki thought. "Heh. I guess there's no point in beating around the bush with you, huh. You always were an insufferable brat." He said harshly. Watanuki clenched his fist. What was wrong with this man? Weren't they family? "Just sign the money over to me. What does a _brat_ like you need with all that money anyway!"

"You know very well _why_! Now that Oba-chan is... gone... I'm on my own. She left it to me because she was worried about me. It said so in her will. She _knew_ you wouldn't take me in. That money is to help me finish school and start my own Japanese confectionary when I'm older. Why are you so upset? She left the entire company to you." Suzume ranted. She had no patience for this man.

"That company is worthless! It's hit rock bottom! You don't need all of that money, just give me a litt—!" Hideki yelled.

"No!" Suzume said firmly, glaring at him. "Don't you dare blame Oba-chan for your mistakes! You're the one who ruined the company by overspending and making bad business deals. We both know that if I give you money now, you'll just blow it all, and then keep coming back for more until you drain me dry."

"You're going to abandon me—Your own family_!_? If your father was alive—" Hideki yelled incredulously. He was really starting to lose his temper now.

"Hah! Abandon you? You abandoned me first, and then you abandoned Oba-chan when she got sick! If my father was still alive, he wouldn't be _half_ as nice to you as I'm being!" Suzume said, shaking her head in disbelief. "My parents asked you to look after me if anything ever happened to them, and you tried to put me into an orphanage before Oba-chan stopped you, and then when she was diagnosed with cancer, you never _once_ came by to visit her! Get out of my sight before I call the police!" Hideki saw Doumeki pull his cell phone out of his pocket out the corner of his eye.

"You haven't seen the last of me, you hear!" Hideki yelled as he ran away with his tail between his legs.

"Yeah, unfortunately." Suzume said, rolling her eyes as she turned back around to face the others. "I'm _really_ sorry about that. I didn't mean to inflict my family's drama on you guys. Thanks for backing me up, Doumeki-kun." Suzume apologized, bowing politely. "I'm afraid my uncle was dropped on the head too many times as a child." She said, smiling wryly.

"No, it's alright... are you okay, Suzume-chan?" Watanuki asked. Suzume smiled a little sadly.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks for asking, Watanuki-kun. It's just been a mess since my grandmother died. Like it's not bad enough that I lost the only person I had left that I could truly consider as family, my greedy uncle—who has never wanted to have anything to do with me before—is probably ready to slit my throat to get his hands on Oba-chan's fortune." Suzume said, sighing.

"Surely, it can't be that bad..." Watanuki said, trying to comfort her.

"No, Suzume-chan isn't that far off the mark." Yuuko said.

"Eh?" Watanuki and Suzume asked together as Doumeki stared at Yuuko, waiting to hear her explanation.

"I can tell you more, Suzume-chan, but it will cost you." Yuuko said, smiling cunningly.

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><p>Author's note:<p>

I've added a link to my profile for a pic of Suzume that I made, and an image of her outfit on polyvore. I didn't make the outfit though, I just found it. ^_^;

I also forgot to mention it before, but this will eventually be an OC/Doumeki story.


	3. House Guests

**Author's Note: I don't own anything but my OC. As everyone knows, **_**XXXHolic**_** belongs to the geniuses known as CLAMP. I'll probably be using a combination of the manga and anime for this story, so I'm sorry if there's any confusion. I hope you like it!**

* * *

><p>≈ Narration ≈<p>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

"**English speech."**

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks for asking, Watanuki-kun. It's just been a mess since my grandmother died. Like it's not bad enough that I lost the only person I had left that I could truly consider as family, my greedy uncle—who has never wanted to have anything to do with me before—is probably ready to slit my throat to get his hands on Oba-chan's fortune." Suzume said, sighing._

_"Surely, it can't be that bad..." Watanuki said, trying to comfort her._

_"No, Suzume-chan isn't that far off the mark." Yuuko said._

_"Eh?" Watanuki and Suzume asked together as Doumeki stared at Yuuko, waiting to hear her explanation._

_"I can tell you more, Suzume-chan, but it will cost you." Yuuko said, smiling cunningly._

* * *

><p>≈ <em>If you believe in it, it is real, if you do not, it is fiction.<em> ≈

* * *

><p>"... What will it cost me?" Suzume asked nervously, wondering what it would be this time.<p>

"That would be... sake, of course~!" Yuuko said, smiling brightly at her.

"Yay~! Sake~!" Mokona cheered, jumping up and down excitedly.

"Oi!" Watanuki shouted incredulously. Just how big of an alcoholic was Yuuko_!_? He'd never seen her act so carefree in front of a customer like this before, either.

"Is that all?" Suzume asked, blinking in surprise. "Come to think of it, last time you said it would cost me a lot to be healed, but so far, I feel like I got off pretty easy..." She said thoughtfully.

"Hm~ That's because Suzume-chan is a strong girl who is able to adapt to new challenges easily... But you are correct in thinking the price you paid was lower than it should've been. Since removing that harmful spirit saved your life, I would've required a price equal to the weight of your soul if I had exorcised it personally." Yuuko explained slyly.

"M-My soul...?" Suzume asked, paling slightly. Although she hadn't really believed in this stuff before, not that she knew for sure that it existed, the thought of losing it was quite frightening.

"Yes, but since I had Watanuki and Doumeki-kun do all of the heavy lifting, the payment you owed me was significantly reduced, so be sure to thank them properly too~!" Yuuko said, smiling.

"I see..." Suzume said, sweat dropping, as she smiled wryly. Thank God for Doumeki-kun and Watanuki-kun! "It seems like I owe you guys a lot! Is there anything I can do to repay you?" She asked, smiling gratefully at them.

"Got any food? We're out of snacks." Doumeki said bluntly.

"Don't you have any shame_!_? At least say please when asking someone for something!" Watanuki scolded him.

"It's okay, Watanuki-kun! I don't mind. Snacks are a pretty modest request after what you guys did for me!" Suzume said, smiling brightly at them. "My house is close by, so we can all go there to get the snacks and sake if you want." She offered.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Just make yourselves at home!" Suzume said cheerfully as she welcomed them into her home. It was a surprisingly small and normal house for someone who had just inherited a large fortune, but it looked like Suzume had been living there for years... There were photos of Suzume and her grandmother and a couple that looked like they were probably her parents (even though they didn't look a thing alike) hanging on the walls, and the whole house felt very warm and inviting.

"Oh? This is a rather nice home you have here." Yuuko commented. Suzume smiled brightly at that.

"Thanks! I'll be back with the snacks and sake in a moment. Just sit anywhere you'd like." Suzume said hospitably as she hurried off into the kitchen.

"What do you think, Watanuki?" Yuuko asked once she was out of earshot.

"Huh? What do you mean, Yuuko-san?" Watanuki asked.

"About this house. Dosen't it have a nice atmosphere?" Yuuko prodded him.

"Now that you mention it, the air does feel purer inside of Suzume-chan's home..." Watanuki said thoughtfully. There wasn't any trace of malice or other tainted energies in her home. Watanuki actually felt safe here, like he did at Yuuko's shop...

_RUSTLE._

"Huh...?" Watanuki said when he suddenly felt an ominous presence in the room. He slowly turned around to look behind him. _"Not another one...!_?" He screamed when he saw the grotesque spirit behind him. "Y-Yuuko-san! Do something!" He cried as he scrambled away from it.

"Like what?" Yuuko asked coolly as she watched the evil spirit float closer to Watanuki. "Calm down, Watanuki." Yuuko said carelessly, as though it were no big deal that there was a spirit in the house with them.

"Yeah, calm down!" Mokona chimed.

"Easy for you to say! You're not being attacked!" Watanuki yelled as Suzume re-entered the room carrying a tray of wagashi, a ceramic jar of homemade sake, three empty sake cups, and two cups of green tea for herself and Watanuki, since he hadn't seemed to keen on drinking sake. She froze when she saw the spirit, eyes slightly wide in surprise.

"_STOP!"_ Suzume said sternly as she glared at the spirit. Watanuki's eyes widened in surprise when the spirit did just that. It froze, just an inch away from his face. "NOW, BACK OFF, AND GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" She ordered it. Watanuki watched in amazement as the spirit followed her commands, as if it were completely under her control. He and Suzume both breathed a sigh of relief when it was gone. "Phew! Sorry about that, Watanuki. They just show up out of the blue like that sometimes!" She said, sweat dropping as she smiled apologetically at them, and served them their refreshments and snacks.

"I see. So they even show up in your home..." Yuuko said thoughtfully as she watched Suzume pour the sake.

"Does this have to do with what you said before about my uncle?" Suzume asked. Yuuko smirked.

"Yes. In fact, it has everything to do with it." Yuuko stated confidently. "You said that spirits will leave you alone if you tell them to, but they shouldn't even be coming near you to begin with. Like Doumeki, although your ability isn't as strong as his, you are unconsciously warding off evil spirits, so nothing harmful should even be attempting to touch you. The reason they are coming after you, is because someone is telling them to."

"_!_?" Suzume and Doumeki said, shocked. Doumeki narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Someone... you mean my Uncle..? That's a bit much, even for him." Suzume said, frowning.

"There is a relatively easy way to stop the spell caster..." Yuuko said. "But that's a horse of a different color, and the sake just covered me telling you about the curse and who it was casting it. Stopping it will require something more... Although this sake is the best I've ever had~!" She said, sighing blissfully. "It's a shame we're already out!"

"Yeah. It was good." Doumeki agreed as he continued to munch on the sweets, which were also being consumed at an alarming rate.

"Wha—When did you have time to drink it all_!_? Can't either of you show a little self-restraint_!_?" Watanuki scolded them.

"Haha, it's okay, Watanuki! I'm just glad someone enjoyed it." Suzume said, smiling. I helped my grandmother make that batch, and it's the last jar I had left of it. I'm glad it didn't go to waste, since I don't drink sake..."

"Oh, that reminds me, how old are you, Suzume-chan?" Watanuki asked curiously. "And these wagashi are delicious! Where did you buy them?"

"Thank you! I made them myself, actually!" Suzume said proudly. "And I'm fourteen-years-old."

"Oh, so you're a year younger than us, then... Wait_, you made these!_?" Watanuki shouted, amazed. "These are amazing! I tried making these once, but they didn't come out tasting nearly as delicious as yours!" He gushed.

"Oh, my~! You're making me blush, Watanuki-kun!" Suzume said bashfully. "It took me a long time to get to this level since I'm self-taught, but my current dream is to own a Japanese sweets shop, so I did my best!"

"Seconds." Doumeki deadpanned, holding out the now completely empty plate to her.

"Oi!" Watanuki said incredulously. Just how rude could a person be_!_?

"Um, I'm all out of wagashi, but I have some cookies that I made this morning too, if you want?" Suzume offered, sweat dropping.

"Do you have anything salty?" Mokona asked.

"I might have some chips, but I'm afraid I don't really have anything I can offer to guests that isn't sweet..." Suzume said, smiling apologetically.

"Eh? Why not?" Mokona asked, pouting slightly.

"B-Because... I spent too much time focusing on how to make different sweets, and never properly learned how to cook any real food... anything that isn't sweets or bread turns into charcoal in my hands..." Suzume said regretfully, blushing out of embarrassment as she avoided their eyes.

"..." They all said as they stared at her.

"Cookies are fine." Doumeki said.

"Is that all you have to say_!_? Don't you have any delicacy_!_?" Watanuki demanded incredulously.

"Hahaha. Don't worry, Watanuki, I'm not upset. One plate of cookies, coming right up!" Suzume said cheerfully as she left to fetch them from the kitchen. She had a feeling Doumeki had purposefully asked for cookies just to break that awkward silence. His words were blunt and sarcastic, but he was a pretty nice guy.


	4. When The Bell Tolls

**Author's Note: I don't own anything but my OC. As everyone knows, **_**XXXHolic**_** belongs to the geniuses known as CLAMP.**

* * *

><p>≈ Narration ≈<p>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

"**English speech."**

[[SUZUME USING KOTODAMA]]

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

"_Cookies are fine." Doumeki said._

"_Is that all you have to say! Don't you have any delicacy!" Watanuki demanded incredulously._

"_Hahaha. Don't worry, Watanuki, I'm not upset. One plate of cookies, coming right up!" Suzume said cheerfully as she left to fetch them from the kitchen. She had a feeling Doumeki had purposefully asked for cookies just to break that awkward silence. His words were blunt and sarcastic, but he was a pretty nice guy._

* * *

><p>≈<em>Instead of regretting what we cannot do, it is better to do what one can. Even if for example, what you do has nothing to do with results, you must forge forward.≈<em>

* * *

><p>"So... Tell me why we're sitting in the bushes at a shrine in the dark, again?" Watanuki asked, sweat dropping, as he, Doumeki, and Suzume hid behind some bushes and waited for the culprit behind Suzume's curse to show himself.<p>

"Because the almighty Yuuko-san commanded it of you?" Suzume said, smiling wryly at him.

"That sounds about right." Doumeki deadpanned.

=Flashback=

"Now, as for how to prevent the culprit from cursing you anymore... It's quite simple, really. All you have to do is catch him in the act, and the curse will not be able to affect you. Instead, it will rebound onto its caster." Yuuko said, smiling slyly at Suzume.

"Eh? But if it rebounds on my uncle, won't he get hurt? What if he ends up almost dying, like I did_!_?" Suzume asked, concerned.

"It is possible... Your uncle doesn't seem to posses much power himself. Even if that man did not believe it would truly work, he has been striking the nail with murderous intentions. The spirits were simply being drawn in by his rage and hatred for you, so the level of the summoned spirit is pretty hit or miss... What I can tell you for certain, is that man will not stop until he has removed the 'obstacle,' you, from his path and has obtained your grandmother's wealth." Yuuko said frankly. "While you can rely on your power over kotodama for defense against spirits while you are awake, you will still be relatively defenseless once you are sleeping or unconscious since the 'barrier' your body naturally maintains will not be enough if another big one like the one that put you in the hospital comes." She explained.

"Kotodama?" Watanuki asked. "What's that?"

'Oh, I've heard of that before! It means something like 'soul of language' or 'sacred sound,' right? The notion of _kotodama_ presupposes that sounds can magically affect objects, and that ritual word usages can influence our environment, body, mind, and soul." Misaki said. "My grandmother told me about it once. She said that words were living things, and I should be careful how I use them since the right words at the right moment in time can either make of break a person... Once something's been said, it can never be taken back. Even if you apologize, the effects can never be completely forgotten."

"My grandfather told me something similar." Doumeki said thoughtfully.

"Yes, that's right." Yuuko said, smirking slightly. "Your grandmother gave you some very wise advice, Suzume-chan. Everything she told you is especially true in your case. If you consciously focus on putting power behind your words by imaging what you're saying actually happening hard enough, then whoever or whatever you direct them at will have to make them come true. It's amazing how much control you have when you've been doing it subconsciously ever since we removed the seal on your powers in the hospital. It seems your power over kotodama only affects the one you're thinking of when you speak, and the others around you are shielded from it, but you should be very careful from now on. Your words carry more weight than they ever have before." Yuuko said cautiously.

"I understand... In other words, no matter how angry I am at someone, I should never say something like 'go die' or 'jump off of a bridge,' because they might actually do it, right?" Suzume asked seriously. Yuuko nodded.

"That would be for the best. The cost of taking a life is a very heavy price to pay." Yuuko said solemnly.

"But on the other hand, if I want to cheer someone up, I can brainwash them into being happy, huh...?" Suzume said thoughtfully, half joking, as she smiled brightly at them. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to use my powers for good instead of evil~!"

"Tell Watanuki to make feudal udon." Doumeki deadpanned.

"The feudal era ended already! That meal went extinct along time ago!" Watanuki snapped, vein mark throbbing on his forehead, as Suzume laughed at their antics. "Anyway, what are you going to do about your uncle?" He asked her.

"Well... He might be a jerk, and I want him to stop harassing me... But 'stopping' him and 'erasing' (killing) him are two completely different things. Isn't there some other way to resolve this, Yuuko-san?" Suzume asked.

"It's not that this is the only way..." Yuuko said cryptically. "But seeing the type of spirits that are targeting you, your uncle must be trying to curse you using a _wara-ningyou_."

"You mean those straw dolls people nail to trees?" Suzume asked. "I thought they were just supposed to convey the hatred of the person striking the nail into it... can they really be used to kill?" She asked skeptically.

"Eh? I thought you said you didn't believe in this stuff before, Suzume chan, yet you seem to know a bit about these kinds of things?" Watanuki said, confused.

"I used to be a skeptic before I started seeing everything for myself, but my grandma was very superstitious and she used to tell me about stuff like this." Suzume explained, smiling wryly as she sweat dropped. "I've been thinking I should probably learn more about the supernatural now anyway, since being ignorant doesn't seem like it'll help me stay safe much longer..."

"Yes, it is as you said, Suzume-chan. Getting involved without knowing the whole story can be quite dangerous." Yuuko said, smiling like a Cheshire cat. "To continue what I was saying about the curse your uncle is using, the dolls are usually made of a few bundles of straw, and are used in a traditional Japanese curse ritual known as _Ushi no Koku Mairi_. Every night, the ritual takes place during 'Ushi no Koku,' the name of a time period used in ancient times, representing 1:00AM to 3:00AM. The person who executes the curse usually wears white clothing , paints face powder on his/her face, puts a trivet on his/her head , stands candles on that trivet, wears single-toothed_ geta_, and at a sacred tree growing in a_ Shinto shrine_, selects a _wara-ningyou_ for a person he/she detests, and nails a _gosun-kugi_ (a large nail about 5 inches in length) to the doll. This has to be repeated until the cursed person is dead. It works best when a string of hair, a piece of skin or some blood of the person to be cursed is mixed with the straw. There is the risk that the person who hit the nail into the tree might turn into an oni, a demon themselves." She explained. "Every night, since the start of the curse, your uncle has been nailing the gosun-kugi deeper into the tree, sending more spirits to harm you. The deeper the nail is driven into the doll and tree, the worse for you it will get. Because you could not see them before, and you had no knowledge of your own power, you had no means to drive them off and became easy prey for the hungry spirits. And now that you can see them, you can actively defend yourself while awake... However, eventually you will need to rest, and when you let your guard down, you will be over taken by them again. The longer you let this go on, the worse it will be. If your uncle is allowed to complete the curse... _you will die._" Yuuko said gravely. Suzume bit her lip as she closed her eyes, knowing that what Yuuko said was most likely true.

"I really didn't want to believe that he would go so far... but come to think of it, at grandmother's funeral, my uncle 'accidentally' pricked my finger when he offered to help me pin the brooch my grandmother had given me before to my jacket, and the tissue I had used to wipe the blood away was taken by him... at the time, I had thought he was just being uncharacteristically nice to me out of grief from loosing his mother, but he had probably planned to get rid of me from the start." Suzume said sadly. "I think even if I talked to him now and asked him to stop, he would probably still keep trying to curse me."

"Yes. That man is not the type who will stop simply because you ask. He will only continue until he obtains the desired outcome. He may not be a demon yet, but even if you survive this curse, he will simply start over, and he really will become a demon." Yuuko said. "His type will not stop playing with fire until he has been burned himself. That is why I suggested turning the curse back on him. If you do it now, he still has a chance of surviving and remaining human."

"... I understand." Suzume said, bowing her head in resignation. "Yuuko-san, please help me turn back the curse for the sake of both myself and that man. I want to stop my uncle from doing harm to either of us any more than he already has." She asked humbly. Yuuko smiled.

"Very well. However, Suzume-chan, you do not require _my_ help to turn back the curse with the method I have in mind. I will tell you the price once your wish has been granted." Yuuko said, smirking like the cat that ate the canary.

=End Flashback=

"Oh, right... and after that, Yuuko-san sent the three of us to this shrine to wait for your uncle..." Watanuki said, sweat dropping as he remembered what had transpired.

"Sorry, Watanuki-kun, but I'm really glad you guys are with me, since this place is kind of creepy in the dark..." Suzume said, smiling wryly, as she sweat dropped. "Although Yuuko-san said that all we had to do was catch him in the act in order to break the curse, it just felt like it sounded too easy..."

"You scared of the dark?" Doumeki asked.

"Not really, but this place just has that 'haunted' feeling to it, doesn't it?" Suzume said.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. There's usually a lot of spirits around shrines and temples like this one." Watanuki said, nodding in agreement.

"... Is that so?" Doumeki deadpanned, obviously not bothered in the slightest by the tense atmosphere around them.

"Why, you—!" Watanuki started to yell when Suzume clapped a hand over his mouth, silencing him.

"Shh! I hear someone coming!" She whispered urgently. The three of them held their breath as the sound of footsteps drew closer. They watched from behind the bushes as a man stepped into view, illuminated by the light of the moon. It was Inoue Hideki, Suzume's uncle! He had come, just as Yuuko had said he would. They watched as he glanced around cautiously before marching purposefully towards a large camphor tree close to their bush, but their view was angled so that they could see him, but not the straw doll. He raised the hammer in his hand, and his face became twisted in a feral snarl as he struck the nail.

_CLANG!_

The loud bang of the hammer striking the nail seemed to echo throughout the night.

"..." Hideki said as he stared darkly at the doll for a moment. They all waited in silence, holding their breath, but nothing happened. "Tch! Nothing again, huh?" Hideki muttered disappointedly. "I thought for sure it might be having an effect when that brat was hospitalized, but to think that she would suddenly recover...! Was it just a fluke?" He wondered out loud. Suzume clenched her fists as she suddenly stood up from behind the bush, unable to contain herself any longer.

"Suzume-chan...!" Watanuki said, startled and concerned. Doumeki frowned slightly. She shouldn't be exposing herself to such a dangerous person!

"Hideki-oji-san... just what were you thinking—doing such a thing_!_?" Suzume demanded, obviously hurt. She had wanted to believe in her uncle to the end, but after catching him in the act, she could no longer deny the truth. Her uncle really did hate her to the point of cursing her to death...! Hideki looked startled to find himself caught in the act by the very person he was trying to curse, but then he smirked.

"Heh, looks like I got found out." Hideki said coolly. "To think you'd be here at this time... did you come here to try to curse me too?" He asked cynically.

"No way! Don't compare Suzume-chan to yourself! She came here to stop you from hurting her and yourself anymore than you already have!" Watanuki shouted as he too jumped out from behind the bushes, unable to stand it any longer. Doumeki came out of hiding as well, deciding there was really no point in reaming hidden when the others had already given themselves away.

"Oh? You're still playing the part of the 'good daughter'? Even though we both know you're actually a _stranger_ to the Inoue bloodline?" Hideki asked Suzume mockingly.

"What..._!_?" Watanuki asked, shocked. What was her uncle saying_!_? Doumeki narrowed his eyes slightly at that.

"Oh, I see. So you didn't tell your friends about that... about how your own mother didn't even want you_!_?" Hideki leered at her, laughing darkly.

"Sorry, Watanuki-kun, Doumeki-kun... but there's something I still haven't told you yet... The reason why he is able to do these things to me so easily is probably because he has never once considered me 'family.' The truth is, I'm adopted. My 'mother' couldn't have children, so she adopted me after my biological mother abandoned me." Suzume said, smiling wanly at the two boys. "But it doesn't bother me so much anymore, because I realized how lucky I was to have the chance to meet my loving adoptive parents and grandmother. You don't need blood ties to become a family." She explained when she saw the sad and pitying expression on Watanuki's face.

"Hmph. Well, it's true enough that you were closer to my own family than I ever was..." Hideki said bitterly. "But I'm still that old hag's flesh and blood! It should have been me who inherited everything! Why did she leave her entire fortune and both houses to the brat of some unknown who—"

"[[DON'T YOU SAY ANOTHER WORD!]]" Suzume said sternly, glaring icily at her uncle. "I might not know anything about my biological mother, but she still gave birth to me despite obviously not being in a position where she was able to raise me herself! I won't let you say anything bad about her or the rest of my family! How dare you call Oba-chan a hag after all she did for you_!_?" Hideki stood there, eyes wide with fear and shock when he realized he couldn't say anything. For some reason, he really couldn't say another word! "Oba-chan gave you her company because you were her only surviving son, and she wanted to give you a chance, but you ended up running the company she worked so hard to create into the ground! Do you know why she left the rest of it to me? Because it was my parent's share! My parents' house, where Oba-chan moved in to raise me after they died, was never really hers to begin with. She left her mansion and her fortune to me because the land has value, and she wanted to make sure I would be able to have enough money to live on my own and pay for school, clothes, taxes, and food until I was grown up and working a proper job. You already had a job and a house, so she thought you'd be fine without it, but it looks like Oba-chan overestimated you." She explained coolly. "[[WELL, WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF, HIDEKI-OJI-SAN?]]" She demanded, releasing him from her previous spell of silence. "If you ask nicely, I might be able to save you from that thing behind you." She added, frowning out of concern. Watanuki took a step back as he stared nervously at the mass of negative energy that had been gathering behind Hideki the whole time Suzume had been lecturing him. It was the evil spirit Hideki had summoned to curse Suzume with earlier. It had finally appeared... only, it seemed to be more interested in Hideki than his intended victim.

"What thing? Do you really think you can scare me with that? There's nothing there!" Hideki shouted incredulously, vein mark throbbing on his forehead, as he looked straight at the evil spirit, unable to see it anymore than Doumeki could.

'That's right! I thought he might be able to see it since he's Suzume-chan's uncle, but since they're not blood related, he must not have that power!' Watanuki realized.

"Oh, that's right. I guess you can't see it on your own, uncle..." Suzume said thoughtfully. "But I wonder... what would happen if you were 'told' you could... They say the power of suggestion can be very strong, so... [[YOU CAN SEE IT, HIDEKI-OJI-SAN. IT'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU]]." Suzume said meaningfully, pointing to where he should look. Hideki's eyes widened in fear as he turned blue with shock.

"N-No! Th-That's impossible_!_?" Hideki stuttered nervously as he fell backwards when he knees gave out, and he crawled over to Suzume, clinging to her as he watched in horror as the spirit he summoned drew closer to him. "S-Stop it! _Don't come any closer, you monster!_!" He shouted at it.

"Oh? I wonder which one of you is really the monster in this scenario..." Yuuko said mysteriously as she stepped out of the shadows.

"Y-Yuuko-san_!_?" Watanuki said, surprised. When did she get there, and why did she make him and Doumeki go if she was just going to come herself in the first place_!_?

"W-What—_!_?" Hideki yelled incredulously. How could she say that_!_? Didn't she see how hideous that thing was_!_?

"..." Doumeki said as he watched the whole scene unfold before him. Unlike Hideki, he still couldn't see the spirit, so he had no idea why the man was freaking out like that, but to think that he'd have the nerve to cling to Suzume after trying to kill her...

"Suzume-chan, now that you have seen your uncle's true character for yourself... does your wish remain the same, or have you changed your mind?" Yuuko asked her seriously.

"... Yuuko-san... Please help me save the both of us. If he turns on me again, I will simply have to stop him again, as many times as it takes... I just can't abandon the brother and son of my beloved father and grandmother, after all. I want to spare him for the sake of the people who have taken such good care of me." Suzume said resolutely as she stared at Yuuko with determined eyes. Yuuko smiled.

"I see. I thought that would be your answer, Suzume-chan." Yuuko said with approval as she walked around behind Suzume and draped her arms around the girl as she whispered in her ear. "Now, keep hold of those precious feelings, and say the words that come to you. Don't worry about the details or what come next, just let the words within flow naturally from your lips." Suzume closed her eyes as she took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled as she opened her eyes and gazed at the spirit before them with half-lidded eyes, as if she were in a trance.

[["Spirits of purification  
>created for order of and the mother<br>that they inhabit the Sky,  
>exactly as when...<br>_CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!"_]]

Suzume sang as she took a few small steps and held her arms up as though she were holding something in each hand.

[["The God Izanagi no Mikoto  
>bathed in the narrow estuary<br>of a covered river with trees  
>permanently leafy, in the South region.<br>_CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!"_]]

"What is she doing...?" Watanuki wondered out loud as he watched Suzume's graceful movements. It sounded like she was imitating a ringing bell every few lines...

"Kagura..." Doumeki said thoughtfully.

"What?" Watanuki asked.

"It resembles a Kagura dance I saw with my grandfather when I was younger. Kagura dances originated as a type of purification ritual, which can also be performed to invoke local gods and gain their favor." Doumeki explained. As he watched Suzume dance, holding her hands as if she were clutching a fan in one hand and purification bells in the other.

[["Please see this suzu as she dances for you  
>Please hear this suzu as she sings for you<br>_CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!"_]]

"_!_?" Doumeki and Watanuki said when Suzume did a little spin, and her clothing suddenly transformed from modern clothes to the flowing kimono and hakama of a miko, and her empty hands now held a real fan and bells.

[["With all the respect from the depth of our hearts  
>We ask that they hear us, such as the spirit that hears our<br>intent, with sharpened ears, together with  
>Spirits of the Sky and the Land,<br>Take the badnesses, disasters and sins and purify all.  
><em>CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!"<em>]]

CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!  
>CHI-N, CHI-I-N~!<p>

This time, the ringing sound wasn't just from Suzume's singing, they could really hear the bells ringing! As Suzume finished her dance, the energy over the shrine took on a more solid form, taking on the image of a large, luminous, white fox that seemed to be made out of pure moonlight.

"Waaah_!_?" Watanuki yelped, flailing his arms, when the large fox suddenly swooped down on them, enveloping them in a gentle light, before flying back inside the shrine. "Wh-What was that..._!_?" Watanuki asked nervously. Doumeki noticed that the Kagura costume that had suddenly appeared on Suzume had been replaced by her modern clothes again, and she no longer seemed to be holding the fan or the bells either. Had it just been his imagination...?

"... Huh...?" Suzume said, blinking as she came out of her trance, looking slightly surprised. "Um... Did any of you just see a handsome man with green hair who was wearing a really fancy kimono just now?" She asked a little nervously.

"No... but I did see you dancing in a miko outfit with a fan and bells that just suddenly materialized on you, before the giant white fox that came up from the shrine and swooped down on us..." Watanuki said, sweat dropping.

"I saw the Kagura costume too, but other than that, it was just Watanuki panicking all by himself when a big gust of wind blew." Doumeki deadpanned.

"You'd panic too if you saw the same thing I did!" Watanuki huffed indignantly. "What did you see, Yuuko-san? Can you explain what just happened?"

_THUMP._

"Of course, just as soon as Suzume-chan regains consciousness." Yuuko said, smiling slightly as she crouched down beside Suzume, who had just fainted. "Thanks for the hard work." She whispered slyly.


	5. Coincidence or Fate?

**Author's Note: I don't own anything but my OC. As everyone knows, **_**XXXHolic**_** belongs to the geniuses known as CLAMP.**

* * *

><p>≈ Narration ≈<p>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

"**English speech."**

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

"_You'd panic too if you saw the same thing I did!" Watanuki huffed indignantly. "What did you see, Yuuko-san? Can you explain what just happened?"_

_THUMP._

"_Of course, just as soon as Suzume-chan regains consciousness." Yuuko said, smiling slightly as she crouched down beside Suzume, who had just fainted. "Thanks for the hard work." She whispered slyly._

* * *

><p><em>≈No matter how trivial the meeting and the incidents that follow may seem, a relationship has been made. Even if it is for a short amount of time, a knot that has been tied does not unravel.≈<em>

* * *

><p>"Eh? Suzume-chan<em>!<em>?" Watanuki shouted in alarm as Doumeki also crouched down beside Suzume to check on her. Judging by the peaceful look on her face, and her steady, even breathing... Suzume was just sleeping.

"Calm down, Watanuki. Suzume-chan is just resting after using too much energy. She'll wake up in a little while, and be just as energetic as ever." Yuuko said reassuringly. "Her uncle, however..." The three of them glanced over at Hideki, who was white as a sheet and shaking like a leaf. He was mumbling incoherently about 'monsters,' 'foxes,' and begging for forgiveness. "Well, I'm sure he'll recover... eventually."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

'Ah... it's so nice and warm...' Suzume thought as she snuggled closer to whatever it was she was lying on.

"Oi, that tickles." Doumeki deadpanned.

"... Eh?" Suzume said, freezing when she realized she had been nuzzling Doumeki's neck in her sleep while he carried her on his back. "Eeehhh_!_?" She cried in surprise and embarrassment, instantly wide awake after that little revelation. "I'm s-sorry, Doumeki-kun!" She said nervously, blushing shyly. "... Wait... when did I fall asleep? Weren't we just at the shrine...?" She asked.

"You fainted from exhaustion, so Doumeki-kun decided to carry you, how nice~!" Yuuko teased her, smiling like a Cheshire cat, as Suzume blushed cherry red.

"Anyway, Yuuko-san, are you finally going to tell us what happened back there?" Watanuki asked.

"I will once we reach Doumeki's house." Yuuko replied slyly.

"We're going to Doumeki-kun's home?" Suzume asked curiously.

"Yeah. It's the closest." Doumeki said.

"He lives at a temple that's ridiculously large." Watanuki added, sweat dropping. "But, Doumeki, are your parent's going to be all right with us intruding on them this late?"

"No. I'm the only one who'll be home for the next few days." Doumeki stated.

"Ah, but won't you get in trouble for having people over without their permission? We can just go to my house. I don't want to get you in trouble, and I can probably walk now..." Suzume said nervously. She was feeling kind of embarrassed being carried by a hot guy, especially after nuzzling his neck like that...

"It's fine." Doumeki said.

"It'd be better if you stayed at Doumeki-kun's tonight, Suzume-chan. You're going to be weak for a while after using that much power for the first time." Yuuko said.

"Wait, how weak? I'm supposed to go back to school tomorrow! I already missed so much because of being hospitalized..." Suzume protested weakly.

"You should be fine by tomorrow morning, but you'll be pretty vulnerable if your left by yourself tonight." Yuuko said.

"I see... wait, vulnerable to what? Where's my uncle_!_?" Suzume asked, glancing around when she realized she had no clue what had happened to the man.

"Oh, we just left him back at the shrine, don't worry. He's still alive, and his life isn't in any danger, but he did receive quite a shock since you used your kotodama to forcibly open his eyes for a brief moment...fu-fu-fuh~!" Yuuko said, smirking. Suzume sweat dropped. That didn't exactly sound too reassuring the way Yuuko was laughing...

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{4:30AM—At Doumeki's home...}

"Wow~! That smells and looks incredible, Watanuki!" Suzume said, suppressing the urge to drool when Watanuki set the food down.

"Yes, our Watanuki is quite the talented chef~!" Yuuko said, sparkling with happiness as she popped the top open on a can of beer.

"Really? Hey, Watanuki, do you think you could teach me how to cook so I can have something other than charcoal to eat once in a while?" Suzume asked excitedly, staring at Watanuki with hopeful eyes.

"Uh, sure..." Watanuki said, sweat dropping as he smiled wryly and rubbed the back of his neck. "So, are you going to tell us what happened now?" He asked Yuuko, chagrined. Once they had reached Doumeki's house, Yuuko and Doumeki had started blurting out orders for 'breakfast,' and Watanuki had only just finished making everything. Well, at least it had given Suzume time to rest a little more before he served them.

"All right, but first I have a few questions for Suzume-chan..." Yuuko said, smiling. "First, Your name, 'Suzume,' isn't written as 'sparrow,' is it." Yuuko stated more than asked.

"No, it's not." Suzume said, slightly surprised. "Most people assume it is since that's normally how 'Suzume' is usually written, but my name is actually written 'Suzu-me' with the kanji 'suzu' for bell and 'me' for bud. My mom told me it was because I was found at a Buddhist temple that had a suzu bell for some reason. Apparently, they found me when they went to ring the bell, and I started crying." She explained.

"... My grandfather told me a story like that before." Doumeki said. "He said that about a year after I was born, he had a dream a small hand was reaching out to him for help, and a suzu bell was ringing. He woke up to the sound of a baby crying, and he assumed it was me. I was awake, but I wasn't crying, so he held me while he walked around our temple grounds and searched for the source. He was surprised to find that a baby girl had been left underneath the suzu bell. Her little cries reminded him of a ringing suzu bell, and she seemed to have sprouted up from the ground, like a bud. The only thing she had with her was a bla—"

"—A blanket with a frog sitting on a lily pad embroidered on it_!_?" Suzume asked urgently, almost dropping her chopsticks as she stared at Doumeki, shocked.

"... Don't tell me... that baby was you?" Doumeki asked. Suzume nodded vigorously.

"Yes! I still have that blanket and everything since it's the only clue I have about my biological mother." Suzume said, stunned.

"I remember my grandfather saying the baby had hair that was almost white, though." Doumeki said.

"Yeah, the teachers at all my schools kept making a fuss over it because they couldn't believe I came that way, so my parents started dying it a more normal color after a while..." Suzume said, smiling wryly as she sweat dropped.

"Wait, so you mean to tell me that you were found by Doumeki's grandfather_!_? And why does a Buddhist temple have a suzu bell_!_? Aren't they for Shinto shrines_!_?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"My grandfather was a Shinto priest." Doumeki said bluntly.

"Then why is this temple Buddhist...?" Watanuki asked.

"My, My. Coming back to this temple after all these years and meeting Doumeki-kun, who just happened to be with his grandfather when you were found, is nothing short of miraculous, no?" Yuuko said, smirking slightly, as she and Doumeki totally ignored Watanuki's question, much to his chagrin. "Now for my second question, you mentioned before that you saw a man wearing an ornate kimono with green hair when we were at the shrine?"

"Yes, when you told me to just say whatever came to mind, I relaxed, and suddenly felt... almost like I was half out of myself...? I mean, I felt like I was in my body like normal, but at the same time, I felt like I was watching as a spectator... I was suddenly in a dark place, and I was singing and dancing for a figure that was half hidden in the shadows as he sat under the camphor tree and drank sake He seemed to be a wounded, but as I danced, he healed. When I finished, he smiled and was suddenly standing before me, holding out little pouch. He didn't actually speak, but I had a strong feeling that he wanted me to take it, and he didn't seem dangerous, so I did."' Suzume said.

"And? What did you do with this pouch?" Yuuko asked.

"I put it in my... pocket..." Suzume said, eyes widening in surprise when she felt the bugle in her pants pocket that had been empty up until their visit to the shrine. "... Yuuko-san, this...?" She asked, confused and amazed as she pulled the mysterious pouch out of her pocket and held it up for Yuuko to see. Yuuko grinned.

"My, it seems he took quite a liking to you, Suzume-chan." Yuuko said mysteriously as she took the pouch and untied its drawstrings to open it.

"Who?" Watanuki asked curiously. "What's in the pouch?"

"The green-haired man that Suzume-chan saw was the spirit worshipped at that shrine—the spirit of that mighty camphor tree we saw." Yuuko explained as she removed something from the pouch, and handed it to Suzume. Suzume stared at the small item in her hand, not quite sure what to make of it. It was a small, golden suzu bell that had a delicate flower bud engraved on it.

"It's pretty..." Suzume said in admiration. The bell seemed to give off a gentle feeling of warmth and safety.

"Yes. That is the camphor tree's present for you, as thanks. The rest of this pouch's contents are his payment to me for finding someone to heal him." Yuuko told her. "The night before we first met at that hospital, the familiar spirit of that shrine came to me for help because the minor land god that was being worshipped there was being injured by a malicious human, and being tainted by the negative energy they were attracting with their curse. That land god was actually the camphor tree your uncle was using to nail the straw doll to, and he began to poison the tree without realizing it. The dance that you instinctively performed acted as a purifying ritual, and it washed away all of the malicious and poisonous energy from your uncle's curse. With your help, the camphor tree was able to completely heal itself again, and lent some of its power to the shrine familiar, which happened to be that fox-shaped spirit we saw." Yuuko explained. "The camphor tree's familiar then proceeded to chase off any remaining spirits, and devoured the meager amount of power your uncle had, rendering him unable to ever call forth a spirit again, in order to protect its master from harm in the future. Now your uncle's spiritual powers have been completely reduced to zero."

"Wow... so that's why you told us to go to the shrine? Because you knew that would happen?" Suzume asked, amazed. Yuuko smiled at her.

"Yep~! Thanks to Suzume-chan, I was able to kill two birds with one stone!" Yuuko said brightly. "Since Suzume-chan's name itself is a special, it helps amplify her kotodama ability. In Shinto and Buddhist ceremonies, bells are used for purification and to ward off demons. When Suzume-chan actively uses her kotodama, it's like hearing a suzu bell ring. That is why she was able to perform the ritual without any real bells, and since you ended up assisting me with a wish from another customer, part of your debt to me for this has already been paid."

"But you didn't even do anything this time. Wasn't Suzume-chan the one who did all the work?" Watanuki pointed out.

"That might be true if her wish had only been to save herself, Watanuki, but because she wanted to save two lives, she owes me twice!" Yuuko declared, holding up two fingers. "And the remaining payment due is... 1) You must strip that dye from your hair and stop altering its color from now on. 2) You must cut some of your hair and give it to me. After you do those two things, everything will be settled."

"I see... when should I—" Suzume started to ask when Mokona burst into the room through the open doors.

"I've brought what you asked me to, Yuuko~!" Mokona sang cheerfully as it held up a what looked like a bottle of shampoo.

"Oh, what a marvelous entrance, Mokona~!" Yuuko cheered. "And such perfect timing too! Suzume-chan, you can go wash your hair with this really quick. It'll remove all the hair dye without damaging your silky hair."

"Okay... should I ask what's in it...?" Suzume asked hesitantly as Mokona presented the bottle of mystery shampoo to her.

"... It might be better if you didn't." Yuuko and Mokona said together as they avoided her eyes.

"That answer really worries me somehow..." Suzume said, sweat dropping. "Well, a deal is a deal, so I guess I'd better get this over with." She said determinedly as she stood up. "Where's the bathroom, Doumeki-kun?"

"I'll show you." He said and started leading the way.

"My, those two get along well, don't they~?" Yuuko commented slyly.

"Don't they~?" Mokona asked, grinning.

"Yuuko-san, why do you want Suzume-chan's hair?" Watanuki asked curiously.

"Hmm... it's a secret~!" She said, winking coyly at him.

"Why are you answering everyone's questions but mine_!_?" Watanuki cried incredulously.

* * *

><p>Author's note:<p>

I added a link on my profile for a pic of Suzume with her new hair as an extra bonus since school is starting back up, and it'll probably be a while before I update again ^_^;


	6. Catching Air

**Author's Note:** Hi, I'm sorry for the super long wait! I hope you enjoy this chap. (^_^) I'm thinking of mostly following the manga, so the chronological order of events will follow the manga-verse timeline. I made a few small changes to the previous chapters too, but they aren't that major and can basically be summed up here:

Suzume is actually 14, so she's a year younger than Watanuki and Doumeki's current age of 15. And this takes place _before_ chapter 24 of the manga (or the anime episode about the twins chained by words), not after, as I had accidentally typed in previously.

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p>≈ <em>Narration ≈<em>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_"My, those two get along well, don't they~?" Yuuko commented slyly._

_"Don't they~?" Mokona asked, grinning._

_"Yuuko-san, why do you want Suzume-chan's hair?" Watanuki asked curiously._

_"Hmm... it's a secret~!" She said, winking coyly at him._

_"Why are you answering everyone's questions but mine__!__?" Watanuki cried incredulously._

* * *

><p>"—Wha<em>!<em>? Where'm I_!_?" Suzume gasped as she suddenly jolted up in her futon, eyes wide and bouncing around the unfamiliar room she now found herself in. Fortunately, her brain caught up to her mouth, and she started to remember the events of the previous evening before she did anything really foolish, like try to report her own nonexistent kidnapping. 'Ah, that's right…' She thought, sweat-dropping, as she smiled wryly at herself. 'I'm at Doumeki-kun's house because he let me spend the night here after we stopped my uncle… But why do I still feel like I'm forgetting something important…?'

Suzume sat there for a bit longer, holding her chin as she furrowed her brow slightly in concentration.

Why was she even awake this early to begin with? She usually only woke up this early on school days…

"_Ah! _That's right, I'm supposed to go back to school today!" She exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "Ah-ah! My uniform and books are still at my house! I can't go without them, but I don't wanna be late, either!" She thought out loud, mussing up her bed hair even more as she held her hands to her head and ran around the room like a chicken with its head cut off. She hadn't actually attended any classes since the entrance ceremony because of the illness caused by her uncle's curse, and now she was at risk of ruining her second chance at making a good first impression by being late on her first day back! And she doubted having an unusual hair color was going to help her case since none of her past teachers had ever believed her, either…

She doubted Doumeki was awake yet, since the sun was barely even up, and she didn't think she should leave without saying goodbye or thanking him, but she probably wouldn't have time to go back to her house and change before school if she waited for him to wake up on his own, and she didn't think waking him up so early would be a particularly decent way for her to express her gratitude…

"Arghh! I guess there's no choice but to go with _that_ for now…!"

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{About an hour-and-a-half later…}

"…" Doumeki said as he stared at the note Suzume had left behind for him on top of the now neatly folded spare futon in their guest room. Her handwriting seemed a bit panicked since she had rushed to jot down a brief explanation about how she had to go back to her own home so she could get ready for school, but despite how anxious she had been to leave, she had still bothered to go through the trouble of folding the futon and making breakfast of green tea-flavored doughnuts for him as thanks for the hospitality…

What was she, a young housewife?

For a moment, Doumeki wondered what made her choose doughnuts, but then he remembered her mentioning that anything she tried to make, other than sweets, turned into charcoal… So, yeah, doughnuts was a good move on her part, even though he didn't usually like eating sweets this early...

Doumeki shrugged and picked up a doughnut. He might as well give them a try. He took a bite.

"… They're good." He thought out loud, surprised. Since they were doughnuts, he had been expecting them to be really sweet, but she had used to green tea to balance out the sugar and create a more mild and sophisticated flavor. Doumeki decided to grab a second one before heading out the door.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

The sun was shining, the birds were singing—it was a beautiful and peaceful day... unless you were Watanuki Kimihiro.

"Urgh! _Why won't these things quit chasing me around, already!_?" The exasperated high schooler shouted as he ran through the streets, trying to loose the particularly _large_ and grotesque spirit that had decided to target him today. Even though he was slaving away in Yuuko's shop to stop this kind of thing, his daily battle with rogue spirits had yet to end.

"Watanuki-kuuuun!" He heard a familiar voice call out to him, but Watanuki didn't dare stop. Not with _this thing_ after him. It would be suicidal to slow down and let something like this catch him now!

"Hey! Watanuki-kuuuun, I said!" The voice called out again, much louder this time. It sounded like its owner was gaining on him, too. A girl with short, white hair who was wearing a Tsuji Academy uniform pulled up next to him on an orange bicycle, keeping pace with him. It was Suzume.

"Yo, Watanuki-kun! Need a lift?" She asked, smiling wryly, as she sweat dropped. Must be rough, being chased by something that nasty this early in the day.

"Suzume-chan_!_? What are you doing here?" Watanuki asked, surprised. He hadn't realized the school she mentioned before was actually theirs.

"Same as you, I guess. I was on my way to school when I noticed you and your tag-a-long, there. So hop on, Watanuki-kun!" She told him, nodding her head to the back of her bike.

Watanuki didn't need to be told twice. In one odd but strangely fluid and graceful leap, he was on the back of Suzume's bike, using the stunt pegs she had on the back wheels for support, while he held onto her shoulders for support.

"Nice. Now hold on, Watanuki-kun—We're about to become one with the wind!" Suzume declared with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, grinning, as she increased their speed. It didn't seem to make any difference to her that the weight she had to pull just doubled, because Suzume took off like a shot, pedaling with such speed and strength, that they actually caught air once or twice along the way when they hit a bump.

"Yahooo~!" Suzume cheered, positively loving every moment, as they took flight from the top of one of the steeper hills in the road, soaring through the air like a scene right out of _E.T_. She just loved the feeling of the wind flowing through her hair while she sailed off into the sky during these brief moments before gravity caught up to her—that wonderful feeling of absolute freedom!

Unfortunately, her passenger didn't seem to share her point of view.

"Uwaaaaaah_!_?" Watanuki yelled in alarm and surprise, clinging tightly to the crazy girl he had just entrusted his life to. He never would have taken a sweet and levelheaded girl like Suzume for a speed demon!

Poor Watanuki had been under the mistaken impression that Suzume was _normal_…

Which she obviously was _not_… You see, even before her powers of kotodama had reawakened, Inoue Suzume had always been a little odd. Since she had been born with such a unique hair color in a country where conformity was encouraged more than individuality, she had always been an easy target for teasing, and didn't have many real friends growing up, until she had to start dying her hair for school. As a result, little Suzume had often played by herself, and as a result, soon discovered many different ways of playing and having fun on her own, such as BMX biking… Which resulted in her present condition as a notorious speed demon that was always looking to catch some air.

But this was something most people didn't discover until it was too late, like Watanuki, who was currently spazzing out as he clung onto her for dear life…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{At Tsuji Academy, one high-speed chase between a spirit and two high schoolers on a bike later…}

"Ahaha… Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away back there, huh?" Suzume apologized to Watanuki sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. He still looked a little green around the gills…

"Ah, well… Thanks for your help, Suzume-chan." Watanuki said, smiling wryly as he sweat dropped. At least they had managed to get there in one piece… Suzume was a nice girl, and, as promised, she had helped him get away by out riding and out maneuvering that awfully persistent spirit… but he _definitely_ wasn't getting back on that bike with her any time soon—A _roller coaster_ was less nerve-racking_!_!

Wait a minute…

"… Um, Suzume-chan, this might be a little late, but… Why didn't you just use kotodama to get rid of it?" He asked, slightly chagrined that he hadn't thought of this sooner.

"Oh, well, it doesn't always work on the big ones like that." She explained rather calmly. "Sometimes I just have to run, like everyone else."

"Ah, I see. I haven't really been able to find anything that works on the really big ones either." Watanuki said, nodding in understanding. Even he could handle some of the smaller ones by throwing salt at them, but the big ones were a different story. "But anyway, I was a bit surprised to see you wearing a Tsuji school uniform. I thought you said you were fourteen yesterday." If that was true, then why was she dressed like she belonged in the same grade as them? Shouldn't she still be in middle school?

"I am fourteen. I just skipped a grade." She replied nonchalantly while she chained up her bike.

"O-Oh. I see…" Watanuki said, smiling wryly as he sweat-dropped. 'Don't tell me Suzume-chan's actually some kind of genius…?' He thought, wondering how he always ended up meeting such extraordinary people.


	7. Cotton Tail

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p>≈ <em>Narration ≈<em>

[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]

[the word 'waves']

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

_A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar._

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p>{Lunchtime at Tsuji Academy…}<p>

Suzume glanced around as she roamed the school, searching for Watanuki and Doumeki. Since that first day of school can sometimes be awkward if you have no one to sit with at lunchtime, they had invited her to eat with them and another friend of theirs. Somehow she had successfully managed to find the school canteen and purchase a croquette sandwich without getting lost. Now, if only she could find her new friends…

"Suzume-chan!" Watanuki called out, grabbing her attention. She looked over to see him sitting on a patch of grass across the yard with Doumeki, who had already begun to raid Watanuki's handmade bentos behind his back. Suzume couldn't help the giggle that escaped her lips.

"Ha-Hi, Watanuki-kun… is that good, Doumeki-kun?" She asked, trying not to smile or laugh too much at her new talented new friend's expense. After tasting Watanuki's cooking the previous evening, she couldn't say she blamed him for wanting to steal a bite.

"Ah! _Hey!"_ Watanuki shouted in disbelief and annoyance. "I know half of it's supposed to be yours, but don't just start taking food without permission!" He scolded Doumeki, hissing like an angry cat. He had started making Doumeki lunches to pay him back for his help with 'Angel-san' until he was enough to participate in his archery club again, but it didn't mean he had to like it! Besides, didn't he just prove he was better when he fired that spiritual energy arrow during Suzume's exorcism the other day—So, why was he still stuck making this guy's lunch_!_?

"Oh." Doumeki said simply as he proceeded to take another bite without skipping a beat, completely unaffected.

_"Don't just say 'oh' and then keep eating!_!" Watanuki shouted indignantly, snatching the bento away so he could divide the dishes up evenly before Doumeki ended up eating all of the best parts by himself.

'Haha, these guys are great!' Suzume thought, enjoying how amusing the two boys were. 'I think they should seriously consider a starting career in comedy together…'

"So, Suzume-chan. How do you like school so far?" Watanuki asked, once he had finished ranting and calmed down.

"Hmm… So far, so good, I guess?" She said thoughtfully, considering the events of the day so far. "I was a little worried about how the school staff would react to my white hair, but I brought a baby picture as proof that I was born this way, so they eventually decided to just let it slide. My classmates seem to have gotten a kick out of it, because they've already nicknamed me 'Usagi-chan'."

"Why 'Usagi-chan'?" Watanuki asked, tilting his head slightly, trying to figure out why her classmates seemed to think she resembled a rabbit.

"Bun." Doumeki deadpanned in between bites.

"There aren't any!" Watanuki snapped, vein mark throbbing on his forehead. Was food all this guy ever thought about_!_?

"I meant the one in her hair." Doumeki clarified calmly, using two fingers to prop up the tiny, floppy half-bun just behind the top of her head, bouncing it up and down. It was kind of entertaining to play with, and her white hair was silky and soft. The small bun looked and felt a lot like a little bunny-rabbit's tail.

"Oh…" Watanuki said, forming an 'O' with his mouth. Yeah, that would make a bit more sense… He could definitely see where her classmates were coming from now…

"Yeah, I thought that might be the case." Suzume said, smiling wryly.

"Watanuki-Kuuun~! Doumeki-kun~!" A pretty girl with dark hair pulled up in long, curly pigtails called out, smiling brightly, as she waved and made her way over to join them.

"Ah, Himawari-chaaaan~!" Watanuki sang joyfully, suddenly as radiant as the sun itself and bursting with energy. "This is Inoue Suzume, the girl I was telling you about earlier. Suzume-chan, this is Kunogi Himawari-chan~!" Watanuki announced happily, introducing them.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Himawari-san." Suzume said, smiling politely, as she bowed her head in greeting.

"Likewise, Suzume-san. But you can just call me '-chan' if you like." Himawari said, smiling brightly, as she sat down and returned the gesture. She didn't seem to notice at all when Watanuki began to swoon over her dazzling smile and ramble on to himself about what a cute and nice girl she was.

"Okay, Himawari-chan. In that case, feel free to call me '-chan', too. I'm actually younger than you guys, anyway." Suzume said, glad to have made another new friend so easily, though she had to stifle a laugh at how funny a love-struck Watanuki looked. 'Yeah, I guess it's pretty obvious someone has a crush…' she thought, smiling wryly in amusement. It was kind of cute… a little weird… but cute, in a charmingly eccentric kind of way. And Himawari seemed like a nice girl, but... it felt like there was something a little… _'different'_ about her...

Suzume gave a mental shrug.

'Whatever. She was still new to this whole 'spiritually sensitive' thing. If Watanuki-kun had no problem with whatever it is, then it can't be anything too bad, right?' She thought, deciding not to worry about it. Everyone has their own situation and circumstances, after all. It was probably nothing… right?


	8. Contract

Author's note: Sorry for the super long wait! I'll try to update more regularly from now on!

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p><em>≈ Narration ≈<br>_[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]  
>{settingstage directions}  
>"Speech."<br>'Thoughts.'  
>[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]<br>[the word 'waves']  
>—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shiftpassage of time.  
><em>A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.<br>_WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.  
>Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.<br>Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_Himawari seemed like a nice girl… although, it felt like there was something a little… 'different'… about her. Suzume gave a mental shrug. 'Whatever. If Watanuki-kun has no problem with whatever it is, then it can't be anything too bad, right?' She thought, deciding not to worry about it. Everyone has their own situation and their own circumstances, after all. It was probably nothing… right?_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8: Contract<strong>

* * *

><p>The rest of the school day was pretty uneventful. Time seemed to fly, and soon the dismissal bell was ringing. Since they were headed in the same direction, Suzume walked home with Watanuki part of the way, and rode her bike the rest of the way home when they parted so he could head over to Yuuko's shop to work. For the first time in what felt like a long while, Suzume felt at peace. She was healthy, happy, and she had made some new friends.<p>

But it wouldn't last.

Suzume was just finishing up her homework, when the phone rang.

"Hello?" Suzume said as answered it.

[Ah, Suzume-chan.] It was Ueda-san, her grandmother's lawyer. Ever since her death, he had made it his business to check in on her periodically to see how she was doing. [I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm afraid I have some rather unfortunate news…]

Suzume's eyes widened slightly when she heard what it was.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

Yuuko took a sip of her green tea and let out a blissful sigh of contentment. Once in a while, this, rather than sake, was good too.

"Ah, so peaceful~" She said wistfully, staring up into the blue sky.

"Maybe for you!" Watanuki remarked tartly as he set down yet another box of her junk to air out. Today his part-time work included cleaning out her storehouse (which she liked to refer to as her 'treasure room'), the contents of which ended up filling the whole yard. "Just how much stuff did you have in there_!_?" He asked incredulously. How did she even get all of this to fit in there_!_?

"How much? Quite a lot! Hehn~" Yuuko replied with a sparkling grin and a laugh.

"Don't give me your 'hehn'!" Watanuki bristled as a vein throbbed on his forehead. "You've stuffed and crammed in there as much as you can stuff and cram! So a simple airing out of the room becomes a major project! You've got pottery piled on top of pottery. I don't believe it! You _could_ have at least wrapped it in paper to protect it! And you're supposed to wrap kimonos in kimono wrapping paper!" He scolded her, flitting from one problem area to another. "And what's _this_ supposed to be_!_?" He demanded, grabbing a soft and round black thing that was sitting between two boxes. "Eyaaah!" Watanuki yelled, startled, when Mokona suddenly sat up in his hand and popped open its eyes.

_~BOINNG~!_

"_This_ is Mokona_!_!" Mokona said proudly, jumping up and bouncing off of Watanuki's head.

"Don't mess things up while you play!" Watanuki snapped.

"Watanuki really is a hard worker." Yuuko commented, amused by the scene he was making. For all his complaints, he sure was doing his work diligently!

"Wow, Watanuki-kun's just like a housewife." A familiar voice remarked, causing him to stop short and whip his head around. Sure enough, it was Suzume, and she was standing just inside the fence surrounding the shop.

"Hello again." She greeted everyone with a smile. After that troubling phone call, she had decided to talk a walk, and just as she was thinking she'd like to talk to one of her new friends, she happened to hear Watanuki's voice coming from over the fence… which struck her as a little odd, since she never remembered seeing anything here before.

"S-Suzume-chan! What are you doing here_!_?" Watanuki exclaimed. Did she get sucked in too_!_?

"Hm? Was it wrong of me to let myself in?" Suzume asked, tilting her head slightly in confusion. The gate was completely open…

"It's fine. Suzume-chan is welcome anytime." Yuuko said with a smile.

"Thank you." Suzume said, giving them another smile, as she ventured further in to join them. "That sure is a lot stuff you have there… are you cleaning out your storehouse?"

"This is all from my treasure room~!" Yuuko replied with a grin and gleam in her eye.

"The treasure room~!" Mokona echoed cheerfully, hopping up and down.

"Oh, that sounds interesting!" Suzume remarked. "Would you like some help?"

"Suzume-chan~!" Watanuki said with a sparkling aura and appreciative smile, deeply touched. Finally, someone who actually wanted to help!

"How nice of you to offer! But it's all right, Suzume-chan. Watanuki can manage on his own. We don't want to spoil him too much." Yuuko answered, causing him to face-fault.

"Since when have you ever _'spoiled'_ me_!_?" He demanded incredulously. She's been a making him slave away since day one!

"Ara, but this is part of _your _work, isn't it?" Yuuko reminded him. "If you let someone else do the work for you, it'll take you that much longer to pay for your wish."

"Geh!" Watanuki flinched at the reminder.

"Oh, so that's how it is…" Suzume said thoughtfully. "By the way, who are those two over there?" She asked curiously, pointing to the twins, who were currently beating the crap out of a pretty rug that had been hung up on a line.

"Yay~! Yay~!" The two girl's cheered as they continuously beat it with the magical staff Yuko had received as payment from one of the members of Syaoran's group and the red bat.

"Oh, those girls are Maru and Moro—_Hey!_" Watanuki shouted, startled, when he saw how rough they were being. "Hit that too hard, and you'll damage it, so do it gently." He told them, sweat-dropping. The girls were both so absorbed in what they were doing, that they didn't seem to hear him at all.

_FLUTTER._

"Huh?" He said in disbelief when one of the butterflies in the pattern moved, rubbing his eyes. Suzume blinked.

"Watanuki-kun… is it just me, or is that butterfly moving…?" She asked tentatively, hoping she wasn't hallucinating.

"Ah, you can see it, too! Thank goodness." Watanuki said with sigh of relief. For a moment, he thought he was seeing things. "Wait, that means the butterflies really are moving_!_!" He yelled, pointing dramatically at the abnormal rug.

"They don't like being hit." Yuuko stated matter-of-factly.

"I see." Suzume said as they continued to stare the unusual rug. That made sense, in its own way.

"You shouldn't accept everything she says so easily, Suzume-chan. I mean, normally patterns on carpets don't move, right?" Watanuki said, sweat-dropping, as he waved his hand.

"But this isn't exactly a 'normal' shop, is it?" Suzume pointed out. "Besides, it's pretty cool once you get used to it. Don't you think owning something like that fits Yuuko-san's style?"

"Suzume-chan catches on fast." Yuuko said with a sly smile, taking it as a compliment. "Actually, it was my payment for a job a once did. But several of the butterflies in the pattern have managed to escape. If any more get away, the rest of the pattern will get lonely!"

"Are you saying that everything laid out here is like that_!_?" Watanuki asked, flinching in shock.

"I told you before… the treasure room is a mountain of treasure! Remember?" Yuuko said with the hint of a smirk as she glanced back at him.

'Ah. One escaped…!' Suzume thought, surprised when one of the butterfly patterns actually flew out of the rug and turned into a real one. Her eyes sparkled slightly as she watched it flutter through the air. The transformation was miraculous. '… So pretty.'

"If that's the case, then you should take better care of it!" Watanuki snapped, too busy playing the tsukkomi to notice. "I know there are messy people, but this is ridiculous!"

"Every now and then, I do some work on it." Yuuko replied nonchalantly.

"Since when_!_?"

"What does _that_ mean?" Yuuko asked, frowning as she furrowed her brow at hit. Watanuki looked away. It felt a little too dangerous to answer this time… He noticed Maru and Moro had finally stopped beating the rug and were introducing themselves to Suzume, who was smiling at their cuteness and looking like she was trying hard not to hug them. There was a blue butterfly perched on her bun. "The things here… are in their 'resting place', awaiting the time when they will be given over to those who require them." Yuuko explained, picking up a clamshell that had a butterfly painted on the inside. "An affinity? That sounds like what happens between people." Watanuki said.

"It's the same." Yuuko replied. "Those with an affinity get along well. But the opposite can…"

"Excuse me." A young woman called out from the gate, getting everyone's attention. "I'm studying folklore at my university. I love antiques, and I'm always making rounds through the curio shops and other collectors." She stepped further into the yard. "I was doing just that when I happened by your yard and fell in love with all the things you have laid out here. I guess I barged in huh?" She said with a smile. The butterfly on Suzume's head fluttered its wings and took off.

"I don't mind." Yuuko said, though she didn't look nearly as happy to see this woman as she had when Suzume arrived. "One could say that your coming here… is hitsuzen. So… What in particular drew you in?"

"This!" The young woman said, making a beeline for a small, cylindrical silver tube, picking it up without hesitation.

'Hm? I didn't even notice that was there at all…' Suzume thought with a small frown. But now that she had… She got the feeling that it was something she wouldn't want to pick up.

'I don't remember that.' Watanuki thought, furrowing his brow slightly in confusion.

"I don't recognize it, but it's captivating!" The young woman said brightly. "What is it?"

"What do you think it is?" Yuuko asked.

"A kaleidoscope?" The young woman guessed. "No, that's not it. I'd sure like to see what's inside." She gave it shake.

KATTA. KATTA.

"It's rattling. There's _something_ in there." She said thoughtfully.

"Yes." Yuuko stated with a grim expression on her face.

"Do you think we could work out a way for me to have it?" The young woman asked.

"I wouldn't recommend it to you." Yuuko told her.

"Are you saying it's too expensive for me?"

"No."

"But… if I said I wanted it no matter the price…?"

"Make me a promise." Yuuko said seriously. "If you take it… you must promise to never open it."

"… Is that really all right, Yuuko-san?" Suzume asked as they watched the woman leave with the silver tube. The expression on Yuuko's face as they were negotiating had her concerned. "That thing didn't seem very 'friendly'."

"Eh?" Watanuki said, surprised. He found it strange that he hadn't noticed it before, but what did she mean by that?

"You have good intuition, Suzume-chan." Yuuko said calmly. "You can trust it. You don't need to explain or justify your feelings to anyone, just trust your own inner guidance. It knows best."

"Mn." Suzume said, nodding. "Thank you, Yuuko-san." She noticed that the sun was beginning to set. "It's getting late, so I think I'll head home." She said, excusing herself with a polite bow. "I'll bring some snacks with me tomorrow."

"Looking forward to it." Yuko said with the hint of a smirk. Suzume-chan's sweets were something special.

"See you at school, Watanuki-kun!" Suzume added with a smile and wave as she left.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Watanuki said with a smile, though he wondered why she suddenly decided to leave.

"Suzume-chan just wanted someone to talk to." Yuuko said, as if reading his mind. "She has an important decision to make."

"An important decision?" Watanuki asked. "Is someone troubling her again?" He asked furrowing his brow with concern.

"No. This time, the one troubling Suzume-chan… is herself." She replied mysteriously. But she wasn't too worried about Suzume. No, it that other young woman was the one who was in the most danger, because unlike Suzume-chan, that woman didn't know when to stop…


	9. The Opening

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p><em>≈ Narration ≈<br>_[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]  
>{settingstage directions}  
>"Speech."<br>'Thoughts.'  
>[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]<br>[the word 'waves']  
>—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shiftpassage of time.  
><em>A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.<br>_WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.  
>Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.<br>Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_"An important decision?" Watanuki asked. "Is someone troubling her again?" He asked furrowing his brow with concern._

_"No. This time, the one troubling Suzume-chan… is herself." She replied mysteriously. But she wasn't worried about Suzume. No, it that other young woman was the one who was in the most danger, because unlike Suzume-chan, that woman didn't know when to stop…_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9: The Opening<strong>

* * *

><p>{The next day, at Tsuji Academy…}<p>

Once again, Suzume had joined Watanuki, Doumeki, and Himawari for lunch. Even though the two girls were chatting away very cheerfully, Watanuki was concerned about because of the comment Yuuko had made about Suzume being troubled the other day…

"Something wrong, Watanuki-kun?" Suzume asked when she noticed he was staring.

"Ah, no… I-I was just thinking that both yesterday and today, even though Suzume-chan mentioned before that she was better at making sweets, your bento seems to be very well made." He said a bit nervously, quickly coming up with an excuse. Her tamagoyaki were decorated with to look like bees with stripes and faces made of nori and white cheese for wings. And she had made her rice look like a flower garden using coldcuts cut into the shape of flowers with white cheese for their centers, and there was a little section of fresh cherry tomatoes and sliced cucumber.

"Mm-hm. It's very cute." Himawari agreed.

"Thank you, but that's because the only things I actually cooked were the rice and tamagoyaki. I'm okay with tamagoyaki because it's sweet, but… boiling rice seems to be my limit when it comes to cooking anything that isn't." Suzume explained with a wry smile, sweat-dropping. "Everything else tends to come out inedible…"

"I see…" Himawari said sympathetically while Watanuki sweat-dropped. Come to think of it, those were the only two things in there that actually needed to be cooked… Everything was stuff that came from the store precooked or could be eaten raw.

"It's good." Doumeki said, alerting them to the fact that he was he munching on one of the tamagoyaki bees.

"Stop stealing other people's food!" Watanuki snapped, cutting the air with his hand.

'When did he…?' Suzume thought, wondering how he had managed to take it without any of them noticing. Doumeki-kun was like a ninja when it came to food. "Well, I guess I don't mind." She said, unwrapping a second bento box. "I brought something extra today." She lifted the lid to reveal a small assortment of wagashi that were made to look like sunflowers, sets of bows and arrows, birds, and suzu bells. "In commemoration of our friendship." She explained with a smile. Each shape represented one member of their group. She hadn't really known what to make for Watanuki, but a blue bird seemed to fit him somehow.

"Ah! So cute~!" Himawari said with a bright and sunny smile when she saw them.

'You're the one that's cute~!' Watanuki thought with a silly smile, surrounded by a warm and fuzzy pink aura of affection.

"Oh! It's you!" A familiar voice said, intruding upon his little fantasy, bringing Watanuki back to the real world, as he and the others looked up to see who it was. "You two work at that shop, right?" The young woman from the other day said.

"Ah! Yes." Watanuki answered, surprised to see her at their school. "Actually, I'm the only part-timer…"

"I was just visiting." Suzume finished for him.

"And your both students here?" The young woman said, a bit surprised. "I'll be working here starting tomorrow. Educational training."

"Really?" Watanuki asked.

"Isn't fate an odd thing?" The woman asked with a smile."This happens to me a lot. They say I've got strong luck. When I think something will go a particular way, it always does. When I want something I always get it." She stated confidently.

"That's fantastic!" Himawari said.

'Luck can go both ways, though…' Suzume thought.

"This, too!" The woman said, pulling the tube out of her purse. "I don't know what's inside yet, but I know it's something perfect for me!"

'Yet...?' Suzume thought, feeling a sense of unease at her choice of words.

DIIING~DONNNG! DIIING~DONNNG!

"Oh, there's the class bell!" The woman said. "Well, I won't be at this school long, but any help you can give would be appreciated!" She waved goodbye as she walked away.

"Did you meet her at Yuuko-san's shop?" Himawari asked as they started tidying up their lunch spot.

"Yeah." Suzume said, quickly wrapping up a wagashi for each of them to take with them in some paper.

"What's that cylinder?" Doumeki asked. Suzume didn't look to comfortable seeing it.

"I don't know." She replied. "What about you, Watanuki?"

"I don't know, either." Watanuki said. "But Yuuko-san told her not to open it."

"Maybe, but she intends to see what's in there." Doumeki said.

"Ah, you think so, too?" Suzume asked.

"Huh? Why would you think that?" Watanuki asked.

"She said, 'I don't know what's inside yet.'" Doumeki reminded him. "The fact that she doesn't know _yet _means that someday she will know."

"… Ah!" Watanuki gasped, furrowing his brow. He shared a look of concern with Suzume. Maybe they should ask Yuuko about it later…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Yuuko's Shop}

"Educational training?" Yuuko asked, listening to the story of their second encounter with that woman, while she and Mokona munched on the candied yams Suzume had brought them. The thought her recipe was superb, because the flavor went well with one of Yuuko's favorite sakes.

"She's going to open it, isn't she?" Watanuki asked, concerned.

"I imagine so. You never noticed that tube, did you, Watanuki?" Yuuko asked.

"No, I didn't." He replied, waving his hand. "Not at all, until that person picked it up."

"It must have had a very severe seal if _you_ didn't see it." Yuuko remarked as she took another bite.

"Is it… that dangerous?" Suzume asked, furrowing her brow.

"I'm going to meet her tomorrow. I'll keep her from doing it." Watanuki decided, worried about what might happen to the woman if she did.

"Yes, we should remind her that she shouldn't try to open it." Suzume agreed.

"I doubt you can stop her." Yuuko told them. "She probably won't listen to anyone's advice. She puts too much confidence in herself."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{The next day…}

Watanuki and Doumeki were the first to arrive at the spot where they were meeting for lunch. Today the were eating by the side of one of the school buildings.

"How's your arm?" Watanuki asked.

"I start archery again next week." Doumeki replied in between bites.

"Isn't it a bit early for that?" Watanuki asked, little caught off guard. Even though he knew Doumeki could do it if he had to, since he had shoot an 'arrow' of spiritual energy to save Suzume, he was still wearing a bandage on his arm…

"There's a competition coming up." Doumeki said calmly. Watanuki furrowed his brow slightly in concern. "But I still need you to make lunch."

'Well, he _did_ get his injury while he was trying to save me. I guess making him lunch as payment isn't too bad.' Watanuki thought with a frown. 'I'll have to ask Yuuko-san to lend me the bento boxes for a little while longer.'

"I think I'll have some fried chicken breast tomorrow." Doumeki stated abruptly.

"I'm not taking your order here_!_!" Watanuki snapped with a vein mark on his forehead.

"I see you two are getting along just as well as always." Suzume commented with a smile as she joined them.

"What part of this looks like 'getting along'_!_?" Watanuki asked, chagrined.

"Is this where you're having lunch today?" The woman with the tube asked as she walked over to them. Come to think of it, they still didn't know her name…

"Um… That tube of yours…" Watanuki began bit a hesitantly, wondering how he should word it so he didn't sound crazy…

"Please remember that the price for keeping it was your promise not to open it." Suzume finished for him firmly.

'Nice one, Suzume-chan!' Watanuki thought, giving her a mental thumbs up.

"I haven't opened it!" The woman said wryly, holding up the closed tube as proof. "Besides, it doesn't have a lid!"

KA-CHAK.

"Sorry that I'm so late…" Himawari started to say as she opened the door behind the woman, accidentally hitting her elbow with it.

"Ah!" They both gasped when the tube fell from her hand, but Himawari managed to reach out and catch it before it could hit the ground. The space around the tube seemed to warp for a couple of seconds after it was in her hand.

"Eh_!_?" Watanuki gasped as both his and Suzume's eyes widened slightly. Just now… What was that…?

"I'm sorry…" Himawari told the woman as she handed back the tube. To Suzume, it seemed to sound as though she was apologizing for more than just bumping into her. Suzume had a bad feeling about this…

_KASHAAK._

The moment it was back in the woman's hand, the silk cord on one end of the tube untied itself, and it slid open. A small swirling cloud of what looked like some kind of black smoke came out of it, but Suzume and Watanuki had a feeling they were probably the only ones who could see it.

"Oh… It's open!" Watanuki said as a bead of nervous sweat rolled down the side of his face.

'That can't be good…' Suzume thought.

"Did I break it when I bumped into you?" Himawari asked, worried she might have done something bad.

"What is that?" Doumeki asked, furrowing his brow slightly. "It's like it's carved out of driftwood."

"I don't believe it! I think it's a monkey's paw!" The woman exclaimed. "I've seen this in the books before! A monkey's paw is supposed to grant wishes!"

"Uh… but it may not be the real thing!" Watanuki said nervously.

"Or worse, it _could_ be real." Suzume said, furrowing her brow. Her grandmother had told her a story about a monkey's paw before. It didn't ended well for the main character.

"You never know. These things always happen to me!" The woman said excitedly, completely ignoring how nervous the two of them seemed to be for her. "Thing I buy for cheap… or things I've been able to dig up… They're things that people have told me I'll never find! It's just another sign of my great luck!" Watanuki furrowed his brow as a bead of sweat slid down the side of his face.

Things were turning out just as Yuuko had predicted…!

"I know! Let's test to see whether it's real or not!" She said.

"Hold on! Just because it's something rare, doesn't mean it's something good!" Suzume said earnestly, trying to stop her.

"Uh, that's right!" Watanuki said. "If you're not careful, it could turn out bad!"

"I'll be fine!" The woman said carelessly. "How about this… the students in educational training are supposed to take gym next period. So here's my wish. I wish that it would rain from now until tonight!"

_SNAP!_

One of the twig-like fingers on the monkey's paw snapped, and the wind suddenly picked up as the sky darkened overhead.

"… I think maybe we should get inside." Suzume suggested, feeling uneasy. They may have just opened Pandora's box…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"… And thus, the rain." Yuuko concluded upon hearing what had transpired from Watanuki and Suzume when they both came to her shop after school that day. "Well, that monkey's paw is the real thing, so the rain was pretty easy for it." She was staring out at the rain as she smoked her pipe while the kids dried off after getting soaked on their way there. Watanuki had somehow ended up in a tug or war with Mokona over his towel. "However, it doesn't have an affinity for that woman. But I bet that she'll never admit it." Watanuki stopped fighting with Mokona upon hearing that. He and Suzume exchange a worried glance.

"If it doesn't have an affinity… what will happen?" He asked.

"That's all up to her." Yuuko replied. "One thing is for sure… 'like a rolling stone', we can't stop it now."


	10. Give and Take

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p><em>≈ Narration ≈<br>_[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]  
>{settingstage directions}  
>"Speech."<br>'Thoughts.'  
>[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]<br>[the word 'waves']  
>—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shiftpassage of time.  
><em>A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.<br>_WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.  
>Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.<br>Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_"If it doesn't have an affinity… what will happen?" He asked._

_"That's all up to her." Yuuko replied. "One thing is for sure… 'like a rolling stone', we can't stop it now."_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 10: Give and Take<strong>

* * *

><p>{The next morning...}<p>

"Good morning!" Suzume said brightly as she opened the door to her classroom. "Huh?" She blinked when she saw how nervous and excited everyone looked while chatting. Did something happen?

"Ah, Usagi-chan!" Yoshiko-chan called out, waving her over to their little group of friends. "Guess what? All the water in the pool is gone!"

"Eh? All of it?" Suzume asked, surprised.

"I know, isn't it mysterious~!" Mami-chan exclaimed, clearly enjoying the drama.

"It's certainly strange…" Kazuo agreed thoughtfully. "I mean, didn't it just rain yesterday? If anything, there should be _more_ water in the pool."

"!" Suzume gasped. 'No way…!' She though. It couldn't be…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Lunchtime}

"I heard that too." Doumeki said, spearing a mini roll with his fork. The whole school was talking about it. "The drain was never opened, but the pool was completely drained of water."

"Huh? How can you drain a pool of water without opening the drain_!_?" Watanuki asked. That didn't even make sense! Their pool was huge_!_!

"Beats me." Doumeki deadpanned.

"If it 'beats you', then don't act like you know everything!" Watanuki snapped with a vein mark on his forehead.

"But, it really did rain yesterday." Himawari said.

"Yeah…" Watanuki said, looking worried.

"Do you think, maybe… that's why the pool is empty?" Suzume said thoughtfully, furrowing her brow slightly.

"!" Watanuki gasped as their eyes widened. "What do you mean, Suzume-chan?"

"I mean, you can't just get something from nothing, right?" Suzume said, playing with the cuff of her sleeve a little nervously. It was just part of the natural order of things. "Not only is that a basic law of science, but Yuuko-san doesn't grant wishes for free, either, right?"

"I see… so that's why you think maybe the monkey's paw used the water from the pool to make it rain?" Himawari said. That seemed to make sense.

"For some reason, I don't think the story of this monkey's paw will end with 'and she lived happily ever after.'" Doumeki stated.

"How do you know?" Watanuki asked him.

"I don't." Doumeki said, munching on an octopus shaped sausage. "You and Suzume both asked that education student over and over not to use it. So I just figured it wasn't good."

"Doumeki-kun…" Suzume said, smiling. It was really nice to have someone willing to believe in you, despite not being able to see the same things…

"Doumeki-kun knows everything about you, doesn't he, Watanuki-kun?" Himawari asked cheerfully, causing poor Watanuki to flinch.

"No! No! He doesn't!" Watanuki quickly denied it, shaking his and waving his hand vigorously. "He really doesn't!"

"Be sure to put in some umaki tamago eggs." Doumeki told him for tomorrow.

"I told you I don't take orders!" Watanuki snapped shortly with a vein mark throbbing on his forehead.

"Pfft… Haha!" Suzume laughed at their little comedy routine. She really liked being with these guys. It helped take her mind off of her troubles for a little while…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Later that evening…}

"It rained! It really rained!" The woman said excitedly as she sat at her in her apartment, staring at the monkey's paw. "It wasn't just a coincidence, right? There weren't even rain clouds around! So this _is _the real thing!" She grinned. "Let's try it one more time! Something that can't normally happen." It was quiet as she thought about it for a moment. "It's got it! That mirror I saw at the antiques shop… It's something really good! I've tried so many times, but the guy won't sell it! I wish it were mine."

_SNAP._

KLUNK.

She turned around and saw something lying on the floor behind her.

"The mirror!" She exclaimed, jumping up to examine it. It was exactly as she had pictured it in her mind. It really was the one she wanted from that shop! "This really _is_ a true monkey's paw!" She said brightly as she held it in its tube. "Two fingers are broken. Does that mean that when it grants a wish, it breaks one finger? Then I have three more wishes." She remarked happily. But then she frowned. "Now that I think about it, that lady in the shop said… that she wouldn't recommend it for me." She also recalled Suzume's words when the tube first opened: 'Or worse, it _could_ be real.' She shook her head. No way! "The myths and legends of the monkey's paw… say that the wishes it grants all end badly… but I know that _I'll_ be okay!" She said confidently. "Now… what'll be my third wish?"

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Yuuko's shop}

"I see. The mirror vanished." Yuuko said thoughtfully. "The one at your shop was the 'Yata no Kagami' mirror, wasn't it? That isn't something that just anyone can walk off with…" The owner of that antiques shop was an acquaintance of hers, and they had called her the moment it disappeared. "Why did it vanish? Yes, I have a hunch. But I'd like you to wait a little longer regarding that… because the 'stone' has already started tumbling."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{The following day, at Tsuji Academy…}

"Are you really going to start practicing archery today?" Suzume asked Doumeki as they leaned against the window ledge. She was hanging out with the boys before class this morning.

"Yeah." He said calmly. "You can come watch if you like."

"Not interested!" Watanuki answered bluntly without hesitation, causing her to sweat-drop. "Besides, I have to work at Yuuko-san's shop today."

"I might be able to come." Suzume told Doumeki.

"Suzume-chan, you don't have to go out of your way for that guy." Watanuki said with a wave of his hand. "It's only Doumeki."

"I'll see you there, then." Doumeki told her, as if he hadn't heard him.

"Oi!" Watanuki snapped, cutting the air with his hand.

"Good morning~!" A familiar voice called out, cutting into their conversation. They all looked up to see the monkey paw woman approaching them. "The weather's really beautiful again today!" She said cheerfully.

"You sound like you're having fun." Watanuki observed.

"You can tell?" The woman asked with a smile. "I was finally able to get a mirror that I've wanted for the longest time_!_! I asked the owner over and over, but he wouldn't part with it!" Suzume frowned slightly. She had a bad feeling about this…

"Don't tell me, you… made another wish on that thing?" She asked warily.

"That's right!" The woman said brightly.

"Eh_!_?" Watanuki said furrowing his brow, also alarmed by the idea.

"Right after I made my wish, the mirror just suddenly appeared!" The woman explained. "It really surprised me! It _is_ the real thing!"

"!" Suzume and Watanuki gasped with she opened the tube, and more of that black smoke came pouring out.

"Urk!" Watanuki took a step back as he covered his nose and mouth, looking like he was going to be sick. It had gotten so much worse than the last time they had seen it, that it had become like a miasma…! The woman didn't seem to notice, but Suzume and Doumeki did.

"Are you all right, Watanuki?" Suzume asked, concerned.

"Huh? You don't feel that, Suzume-chan?" He whispered. She shook her head.

"It looks worse than last time, but whatever it is doesn't seem to be affecting me as much as you…" Suzume replied quietly, wondering if it was because those latent purification abilities that Yuuko had said she had were protecting her.

"Look!" The woman said, so enamored with the monkey's paw that she hadn't heard a word of their little conversation. "When I get a wish granted, a finger breaks. It has five fingers, and two are broken, so it means I have three wishes left."

"But that…" Watanuki said weakly.

"I know you don't want to hear this, but I really think you should stop." Suzume said, furrowing her brow. "After you wished for it to rain, the school pool mysteriously lost all of its water. It might seem minor now, but these wishes clearly have consequences. I'm sure that mirror wasn't just created out of thin air, either. The monkey's paw probably took from that shop. Regardless of how it was obtained, if you take something from its rightful owner without properly compensating them, then isn't that the same as stealing?"

The woman furrowed her brow and frowned slightly at that. She clearly didn't appreciate having that pointed out to her.

"In all of the monkey's paw stories, the wisher always meets a pretty terrible fate." Doumeki added.

"That may happen to_ other_ people, but _I'll_ be just fine!" The woman said stubbornly as she turned away to leave.

"We could say anything, and it wouldn't make a difference." Doumeki stated as they watched her walk away. It seemed that woman wasn't the type to listen to others. Watanuki frowned.

There must be something they could do…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the shop with Watanuki?" Doumeki asked Suzume as they walked over to the archery range together after school.

"Mn." She said, looking a little down as she nodded. "My grandma used to say 'you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink'. We've said about all we can to discourage her, but she still won't listen. It's too dangerous to try to take the monkey's paw back now. She might make a wish to stop us… there's no telling what could happen, then." Doumeki glanced at her.

"… But that's not the only thing that's worrying you, is it?" He asked after a moment. She had been down for a while. Her smiles hadn't been the same.

"Ah, you're really sharp, Doumeki-kun…" She said with a wry smile. "Actually… just before this all started, the family lawyer called to tell me that my uncle… my uncle had a really bad breakdown and had to be committed to a mental hospital about a day after we returned the curse." She finally admitted a bit hesitantly. "They said he was suffering from hallucinations and prone to self harm. I thought maybe it was because he was still seeing things after I forced him to see those spirits, but when I tried to use my kotodama on him to stop it… He was so hysterical that it was like he couldn't hear a word I was saying. And even if it did take, he seems to have already suffered some permanent psychological damage… I never meant for it to go that far…" She said regretfully, biting her lip. She was surprised when Doumeki placed a hand on her head to comfort her.

"I know." He said calmly as he looked her in the eye. Suzume wasn't a bad person. She was a good girl.

"Thank you, Doumeki-kun…" She said, bowing her head slightly, as she wiped away the tears that had started to form in her eyes as she confessed. She could read the expression in his eyes. Sometimes, you just needed to hear someone else tell you that you weren't really as bad as you thought you were.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Meanwhile, at Yuuko's Shop…}

"Something cannot be born from nothing." Yuuko said after hearing what happened from Watanuki as she trimmed the stem of a flower before adding it to the ikebana arrangement she was making.

"Ah, Suzume-chan said the same thing!" Watanuki said, a bit surprised.

"Suzume-chan is a smart girl." Yuuko remarked with a slight smirk. "To fulfill a wish, the materials must come from somewhere. Or a price must be paid."

"Then, her theory about the pool water being used for the rain was correct_!_?" Watanuki asked, impressed. "What about the mirror?" It wasn't really stolen, was it…?

"I just got a phone call from an antiques dealer I know. A very precious mirror vanished from his shop." Yuuko said, confirming their fears.

"Do you think that woman will be okay?" Watanuki asked after a moment, concerned.

"Nothing you told her changed her mind, right?" Yuuko asked. "It's just as Doumeki said." She glanced up at him. "And now, Watanuki… Haven't I been waiting long enough for that roll cake?"

"Oh no!" Watanuki yelled, jumping to his feet. "I hope the sponge cake is okay!" He cried in alarm as he ran to rescue them from the oven before they burned.

"Roll cake~! Roll cake~!" Maru and Moro sang as they skipped after him, leaving only Mokona and Yuuko in the room.

"Once a stone starts rolling, it can't stop itself." Yuuko said aloud. "It just keeps rolling…" She smelled the camellia flower in her hand. "… Until it reaches the very bottom of the slope."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"This is no good." The woman complained, letting her pen fall on the desk she was working at in her university's library. She had come there to work on a research paper, but… "This concept has been done too many times. The seminar I teach will be judged on its ideas. I really want to continue on in folklore!" She said anxiously. "I need a subject with more of an impact! Something that will surprise them! Something they've never seen before! But what? What?" Her eyes landed on the tube containing the monkey's paw that was sitting on top of the books in her bag. She picked it up, and smiled.


	11. The Closing

I don't own anything but my OC.

* * *

><p><em>≈ Narration ≈<br>_[speaking over phone or other electronic devices]  
>{settingstage directions}  
>"Speech."<br>'Thoughts.'  
>[[SUZUME'S KOTODAMA]]<br>[the word 'waves']  
>—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shiftpassage of time.  
><em>A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.<br>_WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.  
>Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.<br>Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Previously:<strong>

_"I need a subject with more of an impact! Something that will surprise them! Something they've never seen before! But what? What?" Her eyes landed on the tube containing the monkey's paw that was sitting on top of the books in her bag. She picked it up, and smiled._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 11: The Closing<strong>

* * *

><p><em>BEE-EEET!<em>

The P.E. teacher blew his whistle to signal the start of another race. They were doing track today in class.

"Wow, you two are really fast!" Suzume complimented Watanuki and Doumeki as she and Suzume crossed over from the girl's side to talk to them since the four of them had finished running.

"You're pretty fast yourself." Himawari told her with a bright smile. Suzume had outrun the other girls in her group without breaking a sweat. "You three really are terrific!" Himawari praised them with a bright smile. She wished she could run like that. Watanuki light up like a Christmas tree.

"But, Himawari-chan, his success today was just luck!" Watanuki said, pointing at Doumeki, with a sparkling smile.

"I'm wounded." Doumeki reminded him. "So when it turns out that we tied… It means that I am more talented." He said, raising his head a little.

"What was that_!_?" Watanuki demanded incredulously with a vein mark on his forehead.

"Pfft!" Suzume laughed while Himawari smiled. These guys were too funny.

"Ahahaha!"

The four of them glanced up when they heard someone laughing really loud. It was that woman with the monkey's paw. She was talking to another group of students. Apparently she had decided to avoid them after Suzume accused her of using it to steal.

"She seems to be enjoying herself." Himawari commented.

"Then I showed the monkey's paw to the professor, and he suddenly looked all nervous and afraid!" The woman said told the other students, looking thoroughly amused. "But everything was okay. My luck is just the best!" Watanuki furrowed his brow slightly as a bead of nervous sweat slid down the side of his face, and he exchanged a worried look with Suzume.

That woman really didn't see anything wrong with what she was doing…

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Later that evening…}

"Of course!" The woman said excitedly as she talked on the phone in her apartment. "Sure I will! Thank you so much!" She hung up and hugged the phone, smiling happily. "The professor just loved my seminar! He said a publishing house was interested in publishing me_!_! The monkey's paw found me some great research materials… and they led to me writing a lecture on the 'Yata no Kagami' mirror. This mirror was a good reference too!" She said, referring to the one she had wished for from that shop. "It's old. It has all the right markings. It could be the real 'Yata no Kagami' mirror. Of course, there's no way it's real… but anyway, I should treat my last two wishes with care." She said with a smirk. Those kids were definitely wrong about it. "The fact that I have the monkey's paw is a sign of my strong luck! It may have turned out bad for others, but it'll be fine fore me!"

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{Yuuko's Shop}

"The only ones who can change an attitude are those who can see the other person with their hearts." Yuuko mused aloud as she stood in her treasure room. "The monkey's paw has no emotions or gratitude. It doesn't concern itself with consequences. She doesn't understand how frightening that thing is. That's why the 'stone' will continue to roll. And it only picks up speed."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{The next morning…}

'What'll I do? I've really over slept this time!' The woman thought nervously, checking her watch as she waited for the next train. 'Today's the last day of educational training! I have to conduct a class in front of all the other teachers! And now I'll be late!' She chewed on the nail of her thumb. 'If only there were an accident! That way I would have a police report to prove the reason why I was late, and they'd cut me some slack…'

_SNAP._

"Eh_!_?" She said, alarmed when she heard the sound of one of the monkey paw's fingers breaking from inside her purse. What the…_!_? Her eyes widened in horror when the person standing next to her suddenly fell forward onto the rail.

_SKREEEEEEECH!_!

The oncoming train's breaks squealed, but it was too late. She could hear people screaming as blood splattered all over the rails. Some of it had even landed on her boots…

_"Some guy just fell in front of the train!"_

_"He got run over!"_

"That didn't…" She said shakily as a bead of nervous sweat formed on her brow. "That didn't count as a _wish_, did it_!_?"

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

{That afternoon…}

"I don't mind making you lunch… but why do I also have to make you snacks for after you're finished with you're club_!_?" Watanuki demanded incredulously as he dramatically thrust the arm holding the snack bento boxes into the air.

"Because Watanuki-kun's cooking is delicious?" Suzume said with a smile, tilting her head slightly. Apparently, she had decided to stay and watch Doumeki practice again.

"I have to work later than normal because of all the practice I missed because of my wound." Doumeki deadpanned, waving his injured hand back and forth as if it were nothing.

"Urk!" Watanuki grit his teeth as a vein mark popped up on his forehead. Just how long was it going to take to pay this jerk back…_!_?

"So, did you include the Inarizushi?" Doumeki asked as he accepted the snacks.

"It's in there! The triangular ones! And I don't take orders!" Watanuki snapped, shaking his fist, as yet another vein throbbed on his head.

"Yay! That's my favorite kind~!" Suzume cheered brightly. Apparently, she planned on eating some of them too.

"Triangular is good for Inarizushi." Doumeki said. "Fox-spirit's ears are triangular."

"Mm-hm." Suzume agreed with a smile and a nod of her head. That's what made them cute.

"!" Watanuki flinched in shock. "Why are you spouting fairytales?" He asked Doumeki, completely taken aback. "It doesn't fit your character!"

"Hm?" Suzume said, frowning when she saw a wisp that black smoke float into view. Watanuki turned to see what she was staring at.

"Gak!" He exclaimed, reeling back. It was that woman, and she was surrounded by wisps of black smoke, even though the tube was closed and still inside her purse.

"She's different today." Doumeki commented as she stalked past them, obviously too wrapped up in her own problems to notice their presence. "And I doubt it's simply because today is the last day of training." He added, noticing the looks on the others' faces.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"It only has one finger left!" The woman exclaimed nervously when she got back to her apartment, finally feeling like she had enough privacy to check the monkey's paw. "I just had a passing thought, and it took it for a wish!"

RRRRRING.

"Hello?" She said, quickly answering the telephone. "… Professor! _Eh!_? W-Wait just a second! I never_ stole _anything in my life!" She insisted adamantly. "Y-Yes… I _was _in the library that day… and I met with some friends from class… But I never stole research materials from anyone!" She gasped. "You're saying that the person whose data got stolen was in the library at the time? How did I come up with my class exercises…?" She started to shake. Where? That was a good question… "A book!" She said. "I saw them in a book!" That had to have been were the monkey's paw got it, right? There's no way— "… Eh?" She said as her eyes widened. "You mean those same exercises were made up by the grandfather of that student? … And there's no way someone else could know?" She asked nervously, paling slightly, as she glanced at the monkey's paw. "Wait a second, Professor! I was just—"

CLICK.

He hung up… The professor had hung up on her… All she could hear now was the dial tone.

"This morning's accident won't become my fault too, will it…?" She asked, feeling deeply disturbed as she finally began to realize the danger she was in. "I was standing next to him… Maybe someone thinks I pushed him… The police—"

_DING-DONG._

"!" She gasped in alarm when she heard the doorbell. No! She wasn't expecting anyone today! Was it really—

_DING-DONG. DING-DONG. DING-DONG. DING-DONG. DING-DONG._

_"I can't stand this anymore!"_ She shouted, dropping the phone. Being so persistent, it had to be the police…! "This is all your fault!" She yelled at the monkey's paw.

_DING-DONG._

"Make this right!"

_DING-DONG._

"Take these problems away from me_!_!"

_SNAP._

SCHLOOM!

The paper talisman that had been wrapped around the monkey's paw unwound itself when the last finger broke, and the monkey's paw launched itself at the frightened woman, grabbing her by the throat.

From outside the house, her silhouette could be seen through the curtain windows as she frantically clawed it while it tightened it's grip, choking the life from her. The silhouette fell.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Oh, Suzume-chan!" Watanuki said, surprised, when Maru and Moro pulled him away from cooking dinner to meet the 'customer' they had sensed. Wasn't it kind of late for her to still be wandering around on her own? "This isn't a 'customer' he told the twins. This is that nice onee-san you met before."

"It's the nice onee-san~!" Maru and Moro sang cheerfully, doing a little dance.

"Well, they're not completely wrong…" Suzume said, smiling fondly at the younger girls. "I did come to see Yuuko-san."

"Eh?" He said, blinking. "Oh, well… I think Yuuko-san went to look for something in her treasure room… But why?" He asked curiously.

"I've been thinking about doing something for awhile…" Suzume said tentatively with a somewhat wan smile. "… And I think I'm ready now. Watching that woman with the monkey's paw has helped steel my resolve. I don't want to become like her."

"… What does that mean?" Watanuki asked, furrowing his brow slightly in confusion as she stepped past him and headed for the shops storehouse.

"You'll see." Suzume replied cryptically.

"It's back." Yuuko observed as she entered her treasure room. The monkey's paw was sitting on a shelf in its tube, almost as if had never left. "I imagine the 'Yata no Kagami' mirror is back as well. The 'stone' has stopped. Although the 'stone' broke in the end." She raised her hand and created another paper talisman to seal it. "The more you tell a person not to open something, the more they want to open it. She thought that the disaster that is brought on by breaking a promise would never come down on her head. No one can consider themselves special. Right, Suzume-chan?" Glancing sideways at the girl standing in the open doorway as she set the newly wrapped monkey's paw back on the shelf. The tube slid shut and the seal was completed. "Have you made your decision?"

"Yes." Suzume answered solemnly. "Yuuko-san, please teach me more about the supernatural, and please help me learn how to control my powers better, so that they won't cause anymore pain or suffering." She said, bowing respectfully to the older woman.

"Pain is an inevitable part of life, Suzume-chan. To think otherwise is a deception." Yuuko said as she approached the girl, reaching out to tilt her chin up. "But suffering is optional. Raise your head, Suzume-chan. Your uncle is suffering because of the choices he made. You are suffering now because you are choosing to blame yourself for something that was inevitable." Yuuko told her as she straightened up a little more. "But it's not a bad thing to take responsibility for your own actions. Suzume-chan's a good girl. I don't mind teaching you along with Watanuki." She added with a smile.

'Along with… was she making Watanuki work here as payment because she wanted him to learn something?' Suzume wondered. "Yuu—"

"Yuuko-san!" Watanuki called, popping his head in through the open door. "The pasta is ready, and the white wine is chilled!" He announced.

'Oh, that sounds good!' Suzume thought.

"Wonderful!" Yuuko agreed with a bright smile. "I'll be right there! Suzume-chan, I want some New York style cheesecake for desert!"

"Eh? You shouldn't make a guest cook for you!" Watanuki scolded her.

"What guest? Fu-fu… Suzume-chan just joined you as a part-timer~!" Yuuko stated with a gleam in her eye and Cheshire cat grin on her face.

"_Ehhhh!_?" Watanuki shouted, completely taken by surprise. Is this what Suzume meant by 'you'll see'_!_? "W-Why would she do that to herself_!_?' He wondered incredulously, stunned into silence. She saw first hand how Yuuko-san used him!

"Oh! Nice reaction, Watanuki~!" Yuuko said, clapping.

"Well, I guess I'd better go get started on that cheesecake!" Suzume said with a wry smile, sweat-dropping at his extreme reaction. Was it really that bad…?

"Yep~ I'm counting on you, Suzume-chan!" Yuuko said brightly. She was really looking forward to it.

"W-What did you do…?" Watanuki asked warily once Suzume was gone, wondering how Yuuko-san had managed to get her to become her indentured servant as well.

"What?" Yuuko asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Why do you assume _I_ did something?"

"… Now that I think of it, I wonder what happened to that educational training student." Watanuki said, deciding to change the subject before he got himself in trouble.

"Who knows?" Yuuko replied mysteriously. "But I'm sure that her 'wish' was granted."


End file.
